Quebec led Canada's MAID adoption, now has world's highest rate
Medical assistance in dying made up 7.9% of all deaths in Quebec last year—double the national average.
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Quebec paved the way for medical assistance in dying in Canada and influenced federal MAID legislation passed a decade ago, and the province now has the world's highest rate of medically assisted deaths.
MAID accounted for a record 7.9 per cent of all deaths in Quebec—6,268 cases in 2024-2025. Across Canada, the rate was 5.1 per cent, or 16,499 medically assisted deaths.
Quebec passed its Act Respecting End-of-Life Care in 2012 following an extensive legislative commission and came into force in 2015. That same year, the Supreme Court of Canada's Carter v. Canada decision struck down certain Criminal Code sections and recognized the right to medical assistance in dying. Bill C-14, passed federally in 2016, made Canada one of the few countries to authorize MAID.
Véronique Hivon, who championed the MAID file as a then-member of Quebec's national assembly, said Quebec's success came from taking time and gathering public input. "The special commission travelled to eight regions to hear from experts, but also from citizens who had had all sorts of experiences with loved ones or themselves," she said.
Whether the rising number of Quebecers choosing MAID reflects broad consensus or poor access to care remains unclear.