Christine Rogan and her husband, Donovan James, relocated to the United States in May 2025 after claiming the Canadian healthcare system suggested medical assistance in dying (MAID) as a primary option for her ovarian cancer treatment.
The couple, who lived in Canada to access public health benefits, said they were prompted to leave the country after medical staff allegedly suggested assisted death before Rogan had begun formal oncological treatment. Rogan, a U.S. Air Force veteran, was diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian cancer in September 2023, Fox News reported.
Patients received MAID information before seeing an oncologist
Rogan and James said that after the initial diagnosis, they were provided with information regarding MAID as a solution. James told Fox News that his wife was presented with details on how to end her life before she had even seen an oncologist.
“It was a heartbreaking experience to be essentially pushed toward death. If I wanted to live, I had to take my life into my own hands and leave this country,” Rogan told Fox News.
James described a series of urgent medical challenges, including a bowel obstruction in March 2024. He said that hospital staff told the family they did not plan to perform surgery on Rogan and that a medical helicopter for transfer to Vancouver was unavailable. James said he eventually disconnected Rogan from hospital equipment, drove to the coast, and took a ferry across the border to Seattle, where she received emergency surgery.
“The surgeon said if we had waited one more day, she would have died in Canada from sepsis,” James told Fox News.
Healthcare access in British Columbia
Rogan and James made three trips between the U.S. and Canada during her treatment. The couple officially decided to leave Canada in January 2025, citing concerns over the quality and speed of care.
Expanding assisted death policies
The use of MAID in Canada has drawn international attention as the program has expanded. According to reporting by The Atlantic, medical assistance in dying accounts for approximately one in 20 deaths in Canada. This rate is higher than in many other countries where the practice has been legal for a longer duration, leading some critics to question whether the system is being applied too broadly.
Health Canada, the federal department overseeing the MAID program, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox Digital.
Health Canada defines medical assistance in dying
Health Canada defines medical assistance in dying as a service that allows eligible individuals to end their lives with the assistance of a medical practitioner. The program is intended for those with a grievous and irremediable medical condition, though critics have raised concerns regarding its expansion.
Patients then wait an additional 15.6 weeks on average to receive treatment.
Keep reading