ARCC’s Submission on Ontario’s Bill-225 to Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills
Re: Bill 225, Harvey and Gurvir’s Law (Provision of Information Respecting Down Syndrome)
While it is a commendable goal to ensure that pregnant people who have been given a fetal diagnosis of Down Syndrome are more accurately informed, we oppose Section 29.2 of Bill 225 and recommend that it be entirely struck from the bill. Subsections (2) and (3) have a paternalistic bias that can harm patients and an underlying anti-choice motivation that seeks to limit the right to abortion. We oppose subsection (1) because if the Minister is mandated to develop written information on Down Syndrome, this should not extend to legislating that doctors must provide it to patients under penalty of law. Better solutions are to improve education for healthcare professionals, and task the College of Physicians and Surgeons with disseminating information and producing new directives and policies.