After long months of reflection and several postponements, Emmanuel Macron announced, Sunday March 10, that a bill opening a “assisted dying” below “strict conditions” would be presented in April to the Council of Ministers, with a view to a first reading in May at the National Assembly, in an interview given to Release and to The cross.
It is, he pleads, a law “necessary because there are cases that we cannot accept humanly”but also of a “law of assembly”, “of fraternity”, “which reconciles the autonomy of the individual and the solidarity of the nation”. “With this text, we look death in the face”he said.
The parliamentary process promises to be long and the outcome will probably not come before 2025. In a message onYaël Braun-Pivet explains that she “will ensure that the debates in the National Assembly take place with dignity, while respecting everyone’s convictions.”
Adult patients, “capable of full and complete discernment”suffering from a ” Incurable disease “ with a “vital prognosis engaged in the short or medium term” and suffering sufferings “refractory” (cannot be relieved) may “ask to be able to be helped in order to die”the head of state told the two daily newspapers.
Minors and patients suffering from psychiatric or neurodegenerative illnesses which impair discernment, such as Alzheimer’s, will therefore be excluded.
“Consent” of the patient essential
In the event of a favorable collegial opinion from the medical team, a lethal substance will be prescribed to the person, which they can administer themselves, or with the help of a third party if they “is not physically able to do so”.
This third party may be “a voluntary person whom he or she appoints when no technical constraint prevents this”or “the doctor or nurse who accompanies him”, according to the text which must be transmitted within ten days to the Council of State. Administration can take place at home, in the nursing home or in a care establishment.
After the patient’s request, “there is a minimum of two days of waiting to test the strength of the determination”explains Emmanuel Macron. “Then, the response must be received within a maximum of fifteen days. In the event of a favorable response, the prescription is valid for three months, during which the patient can, of course, withdraw at any time., he adds. It specifies that in the event of an unfavorable opinion the patient may “go see another medical team” Or “proceed with appeals”.
Even if this act can be compared to a form of assisted suicide, the president assures that he wanted to avoid this term, or that of euthanasia, because the ” consent “ of the patient is essential and “the medical decision has its role to play”, “with precise criteria”.
Strengthening palliative care
At the same time, a ten-year strategy to strengthen palliative care will be presented at the end of March, and some of its provisions will be included in the same bill.
Over ten years, “It’s a billion euros more that we are going to invest in it”, in addition to the 1.6 billion euros currently devoted to supportive care, he specifies. A palliative care unit will be created in each of the twenty-one departments that do not have one.
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Change the End of Life Act of 2016, which admits “deep and continuous sedation” in the event of intolerable suffering when the vital prognosis is engaged in the short term, this was a campaign promise from Emmanuel Macron.
Anxious not to offend sensitivities, particularly religious ones, Emmanuel Macron took responsibility for ” take time “displaying his hesitations, organizing a citizens’ convention and multiplying dinners listening to luminaries of ethics, the medical world and religions. “I took away from these exchanges this legitimate fear that we would assign a value to life, that we would suggest that there would be lives that have become useless. No never. I believe that the text removes the ambiguities”he said.
“Finally, France is emerging from the hesitation of recent months”reacted the Association for the Right to Die with Dignity (ADMD), which welcomes “a fairly precise timetable”.
The head of state believes, in the interview, that “thousands of people and families are waiting” this development, but he also recognizes that this law cannot be “totally” consensual.
“I’m not naive”, “there will be opposition”even “violent attacks”, “and we will have to hold on”he insists, while ensuring that “this exemplary democratic process has helped to pacify the debate”.