French National Assembly backs assisted dying bill

France’s contentious right-to-die bill has been approved by the National Assembly in its first reading, putting it on a path that could see patients being granted the right to die with medical assistance.

French lawmakers voted in favour of the bill by a vote of 305 to 199, marking a key legislative step. The bill will now head to the Senate for further debate.

Macron welcomes ‘important step’

“The vote by the National Assembly on the texts on the development of palliative care and assisted dying is an important step,” said French President Emmanuel Macron on social media platform X.

“With respect for sensitivities, doubts and hopes, the path of fraternity that I wished for is gradually opening up. With dignity and humanity,” Macron said.

Another palliative care bill seeking to bolster measures to relieve pain and preserve patient dignity was also adopted unanimously on Tuesday.

Who could get medical assistance in dying?

The legislation has strict conditions. For patients to receive medical assistance to die, they must be over 18 and either be French citizens or reside in France.

Medical professionals would need to confirm the grave and incurable nature of patients’ illnesses “at an advanced or terminal stage.”

Prescription for the lethal medication

The patients would need to be suffering from intolerable and untreatable pain and be seeking lethal medication of their own free will.

Patients with severe psychiatric conditions and neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease would not be eligible for the measures.

If approved, a doctor would deliver a prescription for the lethal medication, which could be taken at home or at a nursing home or health care facility.

The Association for the Right to Die with Dignity (ADMD) called the National Assembly vote “historic” and said that France had “the opportunity to join democracies concerned about individual freedoms, such as the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada, and Australia.”

“It is a time of joy for those of us who see the hope of a controlled end of life, spared unappeasable suffering and unnecessary agony,” the ADMD said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the Conference of Religious Leaders in France (CRCF) — which represents the Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Jewish, Muslim and Buddhist communities — earlier this month jointly denounced the bill and warned of the “dangers” of an “anthropological rupture.”