2655 reported Belgian euthanasia deaths - 12% increase in 2019.

Alex Schadenberg
Executive Director, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition

The 2019 Belgian euthanasia report was released indicating that there were 2655 reported euthanasia deaths. The 2018 Belgian euthanasia report indicated that there were 2357 reported assisted deaths and 2309 in 2017. In 2010 there were 954 reported assisted deaths representing a 278% increase in 9 years. Vrtnews reported:

Last year, the euthanasia committee registered 2,655 cases of euthanasia. That is 12.6 percent more than the year before. Since the euthanasia law was introduced in 2002, there has been a significant increase in the number of euthansia cases.

In 2019 one child died by euthanasia.

I have not seen the 2019 data on euthanasia for mental or psychiatric reasons but in 2018 there were 57 (2.4%) of deaths for mental or behavioral conditions, 83 (3.5%) for psychiatric reasons alone and 1% of the reported deaths were incompetent people who had made a previous request.

We anticipate a continued growth in Belgian euthanasia deaths as Belgian politicians discuss expanding euthanasia to include "completed life," which is based on people who do not have a medical condition but believe that their life is complete.

Belgium euthanasia cases:

Tine Nys (Center) with her sisters.

Recently a Belgian court cleared the charges in the euthanasia death of Tine Nys (38). The family of Tine Nys argued that she didn't qualify for euthanasia and that she was diagnosed as autistic in order to qualify for euthanasia. The family has now appealed the decision.

In November, a Belgian doctor was charged with murder in the death of 9 patients who were given a lethal dose without request. This case will be heard in 2020.

In October a 23-year-old physically healthy Belgian woman was being considered for euthanasia.

In July, a Belgian man requested euthanasia because he couldn't afford medication.

In March, a Belgian doctor admitted that 1000 assisted deaths without request occur each year.

In January, Europe's top human rights court agreed to hear the case of a depressed Belgian woman who died by euthanasia.

There may be more assisted deaths in Belgium.

Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) (March 19, 2015) on the Belgian euthanasia practice found in 2013 that:

• 4.6% of all deaths in the Flanders region were euthanasia. 
• .05% of all deaths in the Flanders region were assisted suicide.

Comparing the data from the 2013 NEJM study to the official 2013 Belgian euthanasia data one concludes that almost half of the euthanasia deaths in 2013 were not reported to the commission.

The NEJM study also concluded that 1.7% of all deaths were hastened without explicit request in 2013. This means that there were more than 1000 assisted deaths without request.

I hope that the Belgian people will wake-up and realize how crazy the euthanasia ideology has become and recognize the social and human destruction that euthanasia has caused.