HHS Secretary Strongly Opposes "Abhorrent" Assisted Suicide

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. went on record in his Wednesday testimony before the U.S. Senate Finance and Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committees condemning Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD).  He may have been reacting to the widely publicized - then pending - euthanasia death of physically healthy British mom Wendy Duffy, heartbroken over the death of her only son.  Ms. Duffy died by euthanasia at the Pegasos facility in Switzerland on Friday.

Secretary Kennedy is the first U.S. Cabinet level official to go on record as opposing assisted suicide:

https://modernity.news/2026/04/24/rfk-jr-blasts-abhorrent-assisted-suicide-we-cant-be-a-moral-society-if-america-follows/

RFK Jr. Blasts “Abhorrent” Assisted Suicide: ‘We Can’t Be a Moral Society If America Follows’
By Steve Watson - April 24, 2026

HHS Secretary warns Canada’s MAiD program now drives more deaths than any other cause as euthanasia explodes across the West

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. delivered a blunt warning to lawmakers this week: Canada’s rush to expand assisted suicide is turning a once-free nation into a cautionary tale the United States must reject outright.

Testifying before the Senate Finance Committee and Senate HELP Committee, Kennedy forcefully condemned the program known as Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD). “I think those laws are abhorrent,” he said. Pointing directly to the results north of the border, he added, “And we just see in Canada today, I think the number one cause of death is assisted suicide.”

Kennedy made clear the policy doesn’t stop at personal choice. “And as you say, it targets people with disabilities and people who are struggling in their lives,” he stated. He tied the issue to America’s broader standing in the world: “I don’t think we can be a moral society; we can’t be a moral authority around the globe if that becomes institutionalized throughout our society.”

The comments come as Canada’s experiment spirals. The country is on track to surpass 100,000 assisted deaths before MAID’s 10th anniversary this summer, as noted in a recent New York Post report.

As of 2024, the total already stood at 76,475 — more Canadians killed through the program than died in World War II.

Government-assisted suicide is also spreading like wildfire across the West, often sold as compassion but delivering cost-cutting convenience for cash-strapped socialist healthcare systems.

In the Netherlands, euthanasia now accounts for 6 percent of all deaths and the share is rising every year.

In 2025 alone, 10,341 people died by euthanasia. While most were over 70 with physical illnesses like cancer or heart disease, the cases included 499 dementia patients and 278 listed under vague “other reasons.” One case involved a patient aged between 12-18. Dutch experts are now urging caution for anyone under 25, warning that young brains are still developing and highly susceptible to external pressure and online influence.

Canada’s program began in 2016 limited to terminal cases. Within a year, officials were openly discussing how it could save over $130 million annually in medical costs. Expansions followed: mental illness is scheduled to qualify starting in 2027, and discussions continue about “mature minors” as young as 12.

Belgium and the Netherlands already allow child euthanasia. England, Wales, and Scotland are now pushing similar legislation modeled on Canada’s original law.

The results speak for themselves. In Canada, one in every 20 deaths is now government-assisted suicide. Proponents promised rare, tightly controlled cases. Reality delivered a bureaucratic death machine that quietly expanded to the disabled, the depressed, and the financially burdensome.

Kennedy offered lawmakers a clear path forward. “I am happy to work with you in whatever way we can,” he said, signaling openness to bipartisan efforts to protect vulnerable Americans from the same slope.

Another recent case captured the human cost in Spain, where a 25-year-old woman paralyzed after a horrific gang rape was euthanized despite her parents’ desperate legal fight:

Spanish bishops called it what it is: “Euthanasia and assisted suicide are not medical acts, but deliberate interruptions of the bond of care, and represent a social defeat when presented as a response to human suffering.”

They stressed that “the dignity of the human person does not depend on their state of health… but rather is an intrinsic value that must be recognized, protected and helped in all circumstances.”

The message is simple: when life hurts, the answer is not state-sponsored death but real care, real treatment, and real hope.

Canada and Europe are showing the West what happens when governments treat citizens as budget line items rather than sacred individuals.