Exceptional euthanasia: a theoretical construct or medical necessity?

• Published in: The Lancet (British edition) Vol. 403; no. 10435; p. 1443
• Main Authors: Pradat, Pierre-François, Piazza, Sara, Fourcade, Claire, Perrigault, Pierre-François
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 13.04.2024; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; Anesthesia; Anesthesiology; Assisted suicide; Enteral nutrition; Ethics; Euthanasia; Intensive care; Mechanical ventilation; Medical personnel; Palliative care; Presidents; Professionals; Suicide; France
• ISSN: 0140-6736; 1474-547X; 1474-547X
• DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(24)00294-0

In France, the medical community is deeply engaged in a pivotal debate surrounding a draft bill that is set to be presented to the Presidential Cabinet for legalising active assistance in dying.1 The heart of this debate centres around the proposed addition within the bill of exceptional euthanasia, where the lethal drug is directly administered by a medical professional, alongside assisted suicide, where the individuals self-administer the lethal medication provided by a health-care professional; this addition is aimed at ensuring equal access to active assistance in dying for individuals with motor disabilities. The existing legal framework (law number 2002–303 as of March 4, 2002, relative to the rights of the sick and the quality of the health ) permits patients with ALS to refuse life-sustaining treatments such as enteral nutrition, artificial hydration, or mechanical ventilation. P-FPe is President of the ethical committee of the Montpellier University Hospital and President of the ethical committee of the French Society of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care.