AHS: Physician-assisted deaths in Alberta up YoY by one-third in 2017

Alberta Health Services reports 205 residents took advantage of physician-assisted death last year. In the last six months of 2017, there were 102 such deaths, one-third more than in the same period the year before, when the procedure first became legal. AHS also notes that after a spike of inquiries (490) into the program in the first six months of 2017, there were far fewer, 290, in the back half of the year. The agency believes as the public becomes more aware of the program, they're reaching out only when they're ready to apply. AHS adds that 105 patients were turned down for physician-assisted death, generally because of mental health issues, a lack of capacity/competency or due to death not being reasonably forseeable.