Canadian authorities have approved popular children's writer Robert Munsch, whose 85 published books include The Paper Bag Princess, Love You Forever, and The Fire Station, for medically assisted dying (MAID) in the country.
The 80-year-old author was diagnosed with dementia in 2021 and also has Parkinson's disease.
In an interview with the New York Times Magazine, Munsch said while a date of his death is yet to be decided, he would go "when I start having real trouble talking and communicating. Then I'll know".
Canada first legalised euthanasia in 2016 for people with terminal illnesses. In 2021, the law was changed to include those with serious and chronic physical conditions, even in non-life threatening circumstances.
In Canada, people over 18 must meet several requirements to be eligible for assisted dying.
In the same interview, Munsch said his decision was shaped after he watched his brother die from Lou Gehrig's disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which is the most common form of motor neurone disease (MND).
"They kept him alive through all these interventions. I thought, let him die," he recalled.
Scholastic, Munsch's publisher, addressed his decision of assisted death in a statement on Facebook.
Munsch's daughter, Julie, posted on Facebook that her father's decision to pursue medically assisted dying was made five years ago and that he was "not going to die anytime soon".
"My father IS NOT DYING!!! Thanks to everyone and their well wishes, however, my father's choice to use MAID was in fact made 5 years ago, this is not new news and it was discussed in an interview with the CBC in 2021.
"My dad is doing well but of course with a degenerative disease it can begin to progress quickly at any point. The New York Times article is a great interview with my dad and nowhere does it say my dad isn't doing well, nor that he's going to die anytime soon! Please beware of clickbait!
In 1999, Munsch was made a member of the Order of Canada. He received a star of Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto in 2009.