Christine Gauthier testified before the veterans committee of Canada's House of Commons that a VAC employee offered assisted suicide to solve her problems.
“I have a letter saying that if you’re so desperate, madam, we can offer you MAID, medical assistance in dying,” Gauthier told the committee. She agreed to provide a copy of the letter for the legislators.
She later told Global News, “I was like, ‘I can’t believe that you will … give me an injection to help me die, but you will not give me the tools I need to help me live.’”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, to his credit, called the incident "absolutely unacceptable."
“We are following up with investigations and we are changing protocols to ensure what should seem obvious to all of us: that it is not the place of Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC), who are there to support those people who stepped up to serve their country, to offer them medical assistance in dying,” Trudeau said.
