The Act on Assistance in Voluntary End of Life has been adopted by the National Assembly in July 2025. The act establishes the procedures to receive assistance in ending one’s life. It does not involve euthanasia, defined as the act where someone else ends a person’s life at the person’s request. Nonetheless, an intense public discussion surrounded the act, particularly on moral and ethical grounds and related to the need to strengthen palliative care before end-of-life assistance is established.
The act was adopted approximately one year after a referendum in which 54.8% of voters favoured the adoption of such an act. The bill, which was proposed by members of parliament, has been vetoed by the National Council (the other chamber of Parliament), leading to an additional vote by the National Assembly. Medical organizations, as well as the Commission for Medical Ethics, expressed their opposition to the adopted act. They argued, among other points, that the act contradicts the core principles of medical ethics, which emphasize the preservation and restoration of health as well as the prevention and alleviation of suffering. A further concern relates to the risk of abuse: vulnerable individuals could be persuaded, pressured or feel socially compelled to end their lives.