The Netherlands’ Proposed Expansion of Aid-in-Dying

The Guardian ran a story last month about proposed legislation in the Netherlands for elders who aren’t terminally ill, but instead believe they have lived long enough. Netherlands may extend assisted dying to those who feel ‘life is complete’ explains that “[t]he Dutch government intends to draft a law that would legalise assisted suicide for people who feel they have “completed life” but are not necessarily terminally ill.”  Cabinet ministers have provided the Dutch Parliament with a letter about the plan, explaining “people who ‘have a well-considered opinion that their life is complete, must, under strict and careful criteria, be allowed to finish that life in a manner dignified for them’.”  The intent is to limit the law’s application to elders “‘because the wish for a self-chosen end of life primarily occurs in the elderly, the new system will be limited to’ them.” The article indicates that there would be safeguards in the law. The target for completing the draft legislation is the end of 2017. 

Stay tuned.

Thanks to Ron Hammerle for alerting me to the proposed legislation.