Dystopian vision of euthanasia becomes real

Turner Classic Movies presented the dystopian 1973 movie Soylent Green a few days ago, and I was struck by how much the fictional "thanatorium (top photo)," where the character played by Edward G. Robinson presents himself to be euthanized, resembles the real-life, modern-day "Horizon Space" (bottom photo) standalone MAiD euthanasia room operated by the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority. I wrote about Horizon Space last year. And then just a week later, I wrote this follow-up story.

Like a dentist’s office for dying: Vancouver Coastal Health confirms MAiD clinic beside dialysis

My latest investigative story for the B.C. Catholic.

Vancouver's public health-care provider has confirmed that it is operating a secret euthanasia clinic on the ground floor of an office building, directly across the lobby from a dialysis clinic.

In response to a B.C. Catholic freedom-of-information application, the Vancouver Coastal Health authority confirmed on Dec. 9 what its public-affairs office had refused to verify for more than two months—that an office-type area called Horizon Space is, indeed, an area where patients are euthanized. (The room where euthanasia is performed is shown in the Vancouver Coastal Health photo to the right.)

The B.C. Catholic reported in its Dec. 7 edition that it had received tips earlier this year that a Medical Assistance in Dying facility was operating in the five-floor building, located at 520 West 6th Avenue.

Our on-site investigation revealed that an area bearing a sign reading “Horizon Space” is located across the building's ground-floor lobby from a dialysis clinic operated under contract by Providence Health Care, Vancouver's Catholic health-care provider.

Vancouver Coastal made no public announcement of Horizon Space's opening, and no record of its existence can be found on any Vancouver Coastal website. In fact, there is not even a listing for Horizon Space in the building's lobby directory.

The authority's public-affairs office responded to requests for information about Horizon Space with a vague email explaining it has no designated locations for patients requesting MAiD.

"Patients will have their requests addressed, assessments performed and, if eligible, receive an assisted death in the care location consistent with their care needs and wishes," Vancouver Coastal stated in an Oct. 16 email.

In response, the B.C. Catholic filed an FOI application on Oct. 22, requesting "reports, records, memoranda, emails, contracts and any other pertinent records regarding the planning, construction, and operation of Horizon Space." The newspaper paid a standard $10 fee upon filing.

However, the authority's FOI office responded five days later with a notice that supplying all the requested material would cost an estimated $570—and it could be even more.

Mindful of the expense, the B.C. Catholic narrowed its request on Oct. 30 to one asking for "a single record, memo, email, report, or document that explains what Horizon Space is used for."

And that's exactly what we received—a single, four-page document designed to be distributed to incoming patients, explaining what Horizon Space is, how to find it, and where to park and enter the building (details of which were redacted in the copy given to the B.C. Catholic).

"This guide will provide you and your loved ones with important information about the VCH Horizon Space," the document reads.

A hint about how long the clandestine facility has operated can be found in text at the top right corner of the document's first page, which reads, "Vancouver Coastal Health, Assisted Dying Program, October 2024."

That first page also includes a striking colour image of a spacious room that is apparently the area where family and friends can watch their loved ones die.

With its sleek, striped sofas, muted colours, and seaside-themed ambiance, the area could be mistaken for the waiting room of a spa were it not for its central feature, a multi-function reclining armchair that would not look out of place in a dentist's office.

Overall, the decor is soothing but also unambiguously utilitarian, allowing for rapid cleanup following the central act for which the room is intended.

The guide explains, "There is a reclining chair in the space for your comfort, and room for approximately 20 of your loved ones to be with you if you wish. There are couches and chairs for approximately 16 people."

Interestingly, the guide also states, "Ceremonies requiring an open flame or smoke, such as smudging [a First Nations practice], can be performed," but a following section, perhaps referring to limitations to this allowance, is redacted.

Vancouver Coastal has not explained why it kept Horizon Space secret.

Euthanasia has been legal in Canada since 2016, and the B.C. government's Ministry of Health, which directly funds $5 billion of the health authority's $6-billion annual budget, has been an enthusiastic supporter of the procedure, going so far as to order MAiD to be allowed in all publicly funded facilities, including hospices.

The B.C. Catholic could find no record of any of B.C.'s five regional health authorities announcing a standalone MAiD clinic such as Horizon Space. But a private charity, called MAiDHouse, says it has opened two such facilities, one in Toronto and one in Victoria.

Health Canada reported Nov. 28 that there were 2,997 MAiD "provisions" in British Columbia in 2024, about 18 per cent of the country's 16,499 total.

Addendum not in BC Catholic story but for this blog only: I found it interesting that Vancoiuver Coastal Health would call this euthanasia facility "Horizon Space" in light of the fact that the health authority has called the MAiD clinic that was imposed on the campus of St. Paul's Hospital "Shoreline Space." They are similar names, both evoking feelings of tranquility, I suppose.

Dialysis one way, MAiD the other? Critics sound alarm about Vancouver clinics offering life or death

My latest, as published in the B.C. Catholic weekly newspaper:

The head of one of Canada’s leading anti-euthanasia organizations is accusing the B.C. government of deliberately placing a non-descript MAiD facility beside a Vancouver dialysis clinic as a quiet reminder to patients that ending their lives is an available option.

“I don’t think I’m being too extreme about it,” Alex Schadenberg, executive director of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, said in an interview. “I think putting [the MAiD clinic] beside a dialysis clinic is intentional.”

The Vancouver Coast Health Authority won’t say what the facility is. Insiders say it’s a euthanasia clinic, conveniently situated beside a dialysis clinic.

Both Schadenberg and The B.C. Catholic received a tip about the existence of a standalone MAiD clinic at a building that houses a dialysis clinic and offices of the provincial-government-directed Vancouver Coastal Health authority.

What the location of a euthanasia facility so close to a dialysis clinic would mean, Schadenberg said, is that “if you’re very down” about the thrice-weekly routine of undergoing dialysis, “here’s another option.”

He said the apparent opening of a MAiD clinic that is not associated with a hospital or hospice setting is consistent with the B.C. government’s record of strong support for medical assistance in dying.

“Unlike in Ontario, for example, the government in B.C. is leading the way,” Schadenberg said. “This clinic shows they are intentionally in the business of killing people, not just providing a legally mandated service. It’s a big concern. The government is directly involved in promoting death.”

The B.C. Catholic emailed and phoned Vancouver Coastal, which operates 120 facilities serving 1.25 million people, in an attempt to confirm the existence of the facility, but the health authority did not provide answers to questions about the purported clinic’s origins, cost, or even whether it actually existed.

However, a B.C. Catholic visit to the location at 520 West 6th Ave. in Vancouver found evidence to support the tip.

The building is a five-storey structure primarily housing offices and facilities of Vancouver Coastal. The main entrance opens into a lobby area. To the right is a dialysis clinic operated by Providence Health Care. To the left is a clinic-like area behind frosted glass.

That clinic’s entrance door is labelled “Vancouver Coastal Health, Horizon Space.” No one answered a reporter’s repeated knocking at the locked door.

The building directory shows a dialysis clinic but no mention of Horizon Space.

Vancouver Coastal does not have any record of Horizon Space on its website. The building’s directory, next to its elevators, does not list the space.

In response to B.C. Catholic questions about Horizon and other locations at which Vancouver Coastal offers MAiD, a spokesman for Vancouver Coastal provided only a vague answer.

“There is no designated location for patients requesting MAiD,” he said in part. “Patients will have their requests addressed, assessments performed and, if eligible, receive an assisted death in the care location consistent with their care needs and wishes.”

After he failed to answer follow-up questions about Horizon Space, The B.C. Catholic filed a freedom-of-information application with Vancouver Coastal seeking confirmation of Horizon’s existence and intended use.

Schadenberg said Vancouver Coastal’s silence on Horizon’s existence serves only to confirm the insider’s tip that the government had opened a secret MAiD facility.

If so, Vancouver family doctor Will Johnston, a member of Physicians for Life, said in an interview that such a clinic might have its uses.

Johnston, who also heads the Euthanasia Resistance Coalition of B.C., said that any move to take euthanasia out of medical settings such as palliative care wards and hospices “shows that this shameful behaviour can be separated from the hospital system.”

A “death space” does not need to be part of actual health care, Dr. Johnston said. “And, in fact, it doesn’t even have to be staffed by doctors and nurses. It’s really simple to kill people.”

He said anyone can be trained to administer the drug cocktail used to kill euthanasia patients.

“I’m just saying that, as a long-term, aspirational project, having this free-standing facility separate from the health-care system, per se, means that maybe we can work towards making sure the staff are separate from the health-care system as well,” he said.

The B.C. government reported that the province recorded exactly 3,000 MAiD deaths in 2024, 633 (21.1 per cent) of which were in the Vancouver Coastal region.

According to government data, the most common location for MAiD to be performed in B.C. was in a private residence (40.2 per cent), followed by hospital, excluding palliative care beds (26.9 per cent), hospice (12.9 per cent), and palliative care facility (8.9 per cent). Other locations included community care facility, residential care facility, and medical clinic or ambulatory setting.