Petitclerc recounts her own experience with disability in final MAID bill debate
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OTTAWA — Sen. Chantal Petitclerc has recounted her own experience with a disability in a bid to counter criticism of a bill to expand access to medical assistance in dying.
Disability-rights groups argue that Bill C-7 discriminates against people with disabilities, who they fear will prematurely end their lives rather than live in poverty, without adequate health care and support services.
Petitclerc, a former Paralympian who is sponsoring the bill in the Senate, says she knows what it’s like to be in a situation of “extreme vulnerability.”
When she lost the use of her legs due to an accident when she was 13, Petitclerc says her mother was recently divorced and working in a low-paying job; she had to carry Petitclerc up the stairs to their apartment, which had no wheelchair access.
