Executive Director,
Euthanasia Prevention Coalition
I have very bad news for everyone who opposes killing people.
France's National Assembly passed their euthanasia bill by a vote of 291 to 241 on Wednesday, July 15.
The issue might not be over yet.
Sylvie Corbet reported for The Associated Press on July 15 that the Prime Minister and the Senate President will refer the bill to the Constitutional Council. Corbet wrote:
France's euthanasia bill has been sold to the public as having "strict" safeguards. The truth is that this bill does not limit the killing to exceptional circumstances. This laws employs undefined language that is designed to approve the killing of people by medical staff that have been given legal immunity from prosecution.
France's bill states that the person is limited to - Adults who are French citizens or long-term residents suffering from an incurable and grave illness in an advanced or terminal stage, facing constant, intolerable physical or psychological pain
What does it mean to be suffering from a grave illness? Or to be in an advanced or terminal stage? Or to be facing constant intolerable physical suffering? Or psychological suffering?
Is it possible to determine who is suffering from intolerable physical or psychological suffering? Suffering is personal and subjective. Psychological suffering is real, but is it irremediable?
France's bill suggests that people will be expected to self-administer the lethal substance (assisted suicide). However, if a medical professional confirms the person is physically incapable of doing so, a doctor or nurse can administer it for them (euthanasia).
This is different than Canada's law but if passed, the law will be forced to expand since i is easier for a doctor or nurse to administer the lethal poison than for a person to self-administer the poison.
France's bill suggests that a medical team (including at least two doctors or a nurse) must verify the patient’s condition and free will.
Having two doctors or a nurse verify a patient's condition is not a "safeguard." In every jurisdiction, there are medical staff who are willing to kill patients who will approve patients for killing and they will work with like minded medical staff to approve the killing. In other words, this system provides little effective oversight of the law.
Patients will "doctor shop." Some medical staff who are willing to kill will interpret the law more widely than others. Some medical staff will not approve killing people under certain circumstances while others will be happy to do so.
France's bill states that medical professionals are not required to participate in the act of killing but they are required to refer patients to medical staff who are willing to arrange the killing. This means that medical professionals who oppose killing must be complicit in the act.
Further to that, medical institutions are required to participate and allow patients to be killed. This provision will force some medical institutions to close.
I have very bad news for everyone who opposes killing people.
France's National Assembly passed their euthanasia bill by a vote of 291 to 241 on Wednesday, July 15.
We reported on June 30 that France's National Assembly voted to pass the euthanasia bill by a vote of 295 to 232.
France's Senate has defeated the euthanasia bill three times after the previous votes. This final vote will not go to the Senate for a vote as the National Assembly can pass legislation into law even when they are not able to reach agreement with the Senate.
Senate President Gérard Larcher and Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said they will refer the bill, once adopted, to the Constitutional Council, which will have up to a month to determine whether it complies with the Constitution. The law would only enter into force once that review has been completed.
President Emmanuel Macron and the President of the National Assembly, Yaël Braun-Pivet both support legalizing euthanasia and they have pressured members of the National Assembly to support it.
Similar to Canada, France's bill legalizes both euthanasia and assisted suicide. The Canadian data indicates that nearly every assisted death was the doctor administering the poison (euthanasia) rather than the person self-administering the poison (assisted suicide). Also, like Canada, France's healthcare system will cover the cost of killing.
France's euthanasia bill has been sold to the public as having "strict" safeguards. The truth is that this bill does not limit the killing to exceptional circumstances. This laws employs undefined language that is designed to approve the killing of people by medical staff that have been given legal immunity from prosecution.
France's bill states that the person is limited to - Adults who are French citizens or long-term residents suffering from an incurable and grave illness in an advanced or terminal stage, facing constant, intolerable physical or psychological pain
What does it mean to be suffering from a grave illness? Or to be in an advanced or terminal stage? Or to be facing constant intolerable physical suffering? Or psychological suffering?
Is it possible to determine who is suffering from intolerable physical or psychological suffering? Suffering is personal and subjective. Psychological suffering is real, but is it irremediable?
France's bill suggests that people will be expected to self-administer the lethal substance (assisted suicide). However, if a medical professional confirms the person is physically incapable of doing so, a doctor or nurse can administer it for them (euthanasia).
This is different than Canada's law but if passed, the law will be forced to expand since i is easier for a doctor or nurse to administer the lethal poison than for a person to self-administer the poison.
France's bill suggests that a medical team (including at least two doctors or a nurse) must verify the patient’s condition and free will.
Having two doctors or a nurse verify a patient's condition is not a "safeguard." In every jurisdiction, there are medical staff who are willing to kill patients who will approve patients for killing and they will work with like minded medical staff to approve the killing. In other words, this system provides little effective oversight of the law.
Patients will "doctor shop." Some medical staff who are willing to kill will interpret the law more widely than others. Some medical staff will not approve killing people under certain circumstances while others will be happy to do so.
France's bill states that medical professionals are not required to participate in the act of killing but they are required to refer patients to medical staff who are willing to arrange the killing. This means that medical professionals who oppose killing must be complicit in the act.
Further to that, medical institutions are required to participate and allow patients to be killed. This provision will force some medical institutions to close.
We hope that the Constitutional Council will reject the euthanasia bill.
The Euthanasia Prevention Coalition opposes killing people. We oppose euthanasia and assisted suicide and we support caring options.
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1 comment:
When a governmental jurisdiction or a country approves of medical killing, it changes the way you look at that country/jurisdiction. I do not want to think of France as a 'killing country'! Let's hope France's better angels prevail. --Thomas Lester
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