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Member of Parliament

Luc Thériault

  • Member of Parliament
  • Member of Parliament
  • Bloc Québécois
  • Montcalm
  • Quebec
  • Voting Attendance: 64%
  • Expenses Last Quarter: $126,025.95

  • Government Page
Context: House Hansard - 283 - Feb/15/24
Mr. Luc Thériault
  • Feb/15/24 11:46:47 a.m.
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  • Re: Bill C-62 
Madam Speaker, I have said it repeatedly, the Bloc Québécois wants Bill C‑62 to include a section on advance requests for MAID. This is our main objection. We tried to introduce amendments in step with Quebec's request and that of the whole National Assembly. Where mental disorders are concerned, we start from the premise that psychiatry is unable to ease the suffering of every patient stricken by a severe mental disorder. Psychiatrists told us that 50% of their diagnoses are wrong. It is a wonderfully precise science. However, one thing is true. Although there is no exact diagnosis and a diagnosis can change, what is clear, straightforward, specific and a constant in a patient's journey over the decades is that they suffer. Psychiatrists cannot deny that their patients suffer, and that all they can offer them is a path to palliative care. In fact, Dr. Gagnon told us we had to develop palliative care for people afflicted with mental disorders because that is all we can offer them. Quebec made its decision in 2021. It did not have the opportunity to work off the expert report that the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying had in 2022.
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Context: House Hansard - 280 - Feb/12/24
Mr. Luc Thériault
  • Feb/12/24 1:54:13 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am not so sure about the wording of that question. It is up to the patient to make the request, but it is not the patient who ultimately decides. The decision is made by the assessors, the treatment team as well as a psychiatrist who is independent of the treatment team and independent of the person who will carry out the procedure. There will also be prospective oversight, not retrospective oversight. There are enough guidelines for us to make an informed decision in this matter.
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Context: House Hansard - 280 - Feb/12/24
Mr. Luc Thériault (Montcalm, BQ)
  • Feb/12/24 1:03:22 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, with all due respect to my colleague, who sits with me at the Standing Committee on Health, I invite him to reread the expert report. Honestly, when I heard him talking in his speech about people with mental disorders being put to death by the state, I thought that was utterly outrageous. Recommendation 10 states, “The requester should be assessed by at least one assessor with expertise in the condition(s). In cases involving [mental disorders], the assessor with expertise in the condition should be a psychiatrist independent from the treating team/provider.” He talked about two doctors. There they are. What is more, “Assessors with expertise in the person's condition(s) should review the diagnosis, and ensure the requester is aware of all reasonable options for treatment and has given them serious consideration.” How can my colleague make such claims, when medical assistance in dying for mental illness has to be requested? Just because someone requests MAID does not mean they are eligible for it. Does he not trust the people who practice his profession?
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