France’s National Assembly has passed a bill to create a right to assisted dying, with strict safeguards, after years of debate and repeated reversals in the upper house.

MPs voted 291 to 241 to approve the measure, which had previously been rejected three times by the Senate. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu is expected to refer parts of the bill to France’s Constitutional Council to determine whether it complies with the constitution before it can become law.

Eligibility and safeguards

The legislation would allow assisted dying for French adults with a “serious and incurable” illness that is life-threatening and in an advanced or terminal stage. It would require that the condition leaves the person in constant physical or psychological suffering that is unbearable and resistant to treatment.

The patient would have to make a request to a doctor, expressing their intention freely. After consultation, the doctor would decide within 15 days.

Two-step confirmation and administration

Once the doctor has agreed that the criteria are met, the patient would be given a two-day period to reflect, after which they would confirm their request again.

The final step would involve the patient administering a lethal substance themselves. If they were unable to do so, a doctor or nurse could carry out the administration. The decision to proceed would also need to be verified by the physician on the day of the procedure.

Constitutional review and political delay

Wednesday’s vote means France could join a number of European countries that have decriminalised assisted dying in some form.

On the eve of the vote, Lecornu said he intended to submit provisions of the bill to the Constitutional Council, a nine-member body that checks whether laws comply with the constitution.

President Emmanuel Macron has previously backed end-of-life legislation, but the process was delayed after he called snap elections two years ago. Since 2024, French prime ministers have shown greater reluctance to advance the assisted dying bill, and Lecornu is known to have reservations about its terms.

Ahead of the vote, Lecornu’s office said the National Assembly had debated the bill extensively, but that the Senate had not allowed scrutiny that addressed “both the aspirations of its supporters and concerns of those worried about its implementation”.

It said the constitutional review should focus on three specific elements: whether the two-day reflection period is too short; whether patients protected under the law but with impaired judgement can still give free and informed consent; and the role of health and social care facilities in providing assisted dying services, given their stated mission to deliver palliative care for those who are terminally ill.

European context and UK debate

The assisted dying issue has been highly contentious in France, with opposition from the Catholic Church and parts of the medical profession. Despite the political conflict, opinion polls have indicated that a large majority of people in France support giving terminally ill patients a choice between palliative care and assisted dying.

Similar arguments have played out elsewhere in Europe. The UK’s bill to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales stalled earlier this year and is due to return to Parliament in September.

In the Netherlands and Belgium, assisted dying has been legal since 2002 for people with unbearable suffering from incurable illness, with the practice carried out under a physician’s oversight. Switzerland has long allowed assisted suicide where the person who helps acts unselfishly.

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16 July 2026

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I don't wish suffering upon anyone and see the reason for allowing people to seek peace.

The Catholics forbid suicide for their selfish religious reasons. They should have no influence on the law. If God is against it let him come down and explain why.

Ah, US hypocrisy comes to mind. We forbid you deciding your own health decisions if we deem them as opposed to our beliefs. Wait, what? Yes, of course it is reasonable to keep you lingering, billing you until you have no finances left. That, in no way, offends our moral sensitivities.

An individual's right to make an informed choice should not be denied. Ironically such a denial is in my opinion inhumane.

Because it’s worked out so brilliantly in Canada where they’re now quietly clearing hospital beds and cutting social costs.

France will surely handle the slippery slope with perfect precision. Bold move.

Switzerland is the only place in my opinion where this is done correctly.

Dr. Ellen Wiebe who has enthusiastically euthanised 500+ depressed/ disabled people in 5 years.

Her amused nonchalance is striking until you zoom in on her eyes. Then it becomes clear that only the calm void of a psychopath could make the job of ending so many lives feel so routine.

“We know that angry family members are our greatest risk (laughter).”

She was also leader of abortion pill clinical trials..

Edited July 16Jul 16 by FinChin67

8 hours ago, FinChin67 said:

Because it’s worked out so brilliantly in Canada where they’re now quietly clearing hospital beds and cutting social costs.

France will surely handle the slippery slope with perfect precision. Bold move.

Switzerland is the only place in my opinion where this is done correctly.

Dr. Ellen Wiebe who has enthusiastically euthanised 500+ depressed/ disabled people in 5 years.

Her amused nonchalance is striking until you zoom in on her eyes. Then it becomes clear that only the calm void of a psychopath could make the job of ending so many lives feel so routine.

“We know that angry family members are our greatest risk (laughter).”

She was also leader of abortion pill clinical trials..

Such nonsense! In Canada 16,500 receive Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD), around 5% of all deaths. Our legislation states that patients must have a terminal illness with less than six months to live.

No depressed person is euthanised. Mental illness was considered in Parliament to add to the law but deferred for three years.

Suffering is only experienced by the sufferer. It can't be explained to anyone else. I believe psychological illness is every bit as much pain as physical illness. Would you prefer these troubled people committing suicide, and often not succeeding?

California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Washington and Washington, D.C all have assisted dying laws. Oregon's is the most liberal as it allows people from out-of-state to seek euthanasia there.

How is Switzerland "better" than Canada at assisted death? They used precisely the same drugs and same dosages.

Ellen Weibe in a Clinal Professor of Family Practice at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, hardly an outlier. Physicians take oaths to "do no harm". The harm is to leave any person in pain.

Ellen Wiebe https://nationalpost.com/feature/canada-maid-assisted-suicide-doctor

12 hours ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Such nonsense! In Canada 16,500 receive Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD), around 5% of all deaths. Our legislation states that patients must have a terminal illness with less than six months to live.

No depressed person is euthanised. Mental illness was considered in Parliament to add to the law but deferred for three years.

Suffering is only experienced by the sufferer. It can't be explained to anyone else. I believe psychological illness is every bit as much pain as physical illness. Would you prefer these troubled people committing suicide, and often not succeeding?

California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Washington and Washington, D.C all have assisted dying laws. Oregon's is the most liberal as it allows people from out-of-state to seek euthanasia there.

How is Switzerland "better" than Canada at assisted death? They used precisely the same drugs and same dosages.

Ellen Weibe in a Clinal Professor of Family Practice at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, hardly an outlier. Physicians take oaths to "do no harm". The harm is to leave any person in pain.

Ellen Wiebe https://nationalpost.com/feature/canada-maid-assisted-suicide-doctor

Kiano Vafaeian (26 years old, 2025/2026)
Young man with Type 1 diabetes and partial vision loss, plus mental health struggles. Denied MAiD in Ontario but approved in Vancouver by Dr. Ellen Wiebe. His mother says it was chosen over proper care and accuses the system of exploiting loopholes before mental illness expansion

Mrs. B (80s, Ontario, 2023)
Elderly woman with post-surgery complications. She withdrew her MAiD request citing religious beliefs and wanted palliative/hospice care. Her husband (experiencing caregiver burnout) pushed for reassessment. Approved and euthanized the same day despite concerns.

Tim Hortons assessment case (2024)
Man in his 40s with inflammatory bowel disease, substance abuse, mental illness, and social isolation. Assessment done outside a coffee shop; doctor then drove him to a cadaver storage facility for the lethal injection. Family not properly consulted.

Veterans offered MAiD
Multiple cases, including Paralympian Christine Gauthier (seeking wheelchair ramp help) and combat vets with PTSD. Caseworkers suggested assisted dying instead of support. Reports of 5–20+ such incidents.

Margaret Marsilla, mother of 26-yr-old Kiano Vafaeian, who Canada euthanized even after statements from several doctors who refused to approve MAID for him. "Luckily" Dr. Ellen Wiebe, aka “Dr. Death,” authorized it.

Same-day/next-day deaths
In Ontario 2023 alone, 65 same-day and 154 next-day MAiD provisions. Raises questions about rushed decisions, inadequate reflection, and pressure.

People citing poverty, homelessness fears, isolation, or lack of affordable housing (e.g., chemical sensitivity cases like "Sophia") + offers of MAiD in ERs, to disabled individuals, or instead of treatments.

Dr. Ellen Wiebe, aka “Dr. Death gets to be a state sanctioned murderer, gets paid by tax dollars and her victims come willingly to her because health care system pushes them to her. It's wildly unsettling.

Inadequate safeguards, expansion from terminal illness to broader suffering and societal failures being "solved" by death but anyways, go on. You can fill the void with Indians / refugees.

While official figures show the vast majority of people accessing Maid have terminal illnesses, critics worry that a small, but growing proportion of the cases reflect poverty and social inequality pushing people to end their lives.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/31/canada-medically-assisted-death-judge-ruling

Better Off Dead? - Liz Carr's documentary on assisted suicide

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEysXRLTG5M

Canadian doctor who has helped kill over 400 people speaks to Liz Carr for her BBC AS documentary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwJkFWKH18s

22 hours ago, wwest5829 said:

Ah, US hypocrisy comes to mind. We forbid you deciding your own health decisions if we deem them as opposed to our beliefs. Wait, what? Yes, of course it is reasonable to keep you lingering, billing you until you have no finances left. That, in no way, offends our moral sensitivities.

The article is mainly about France, no mention of US laws. Brain dead? I am from Oregon, where assisted suicide has been legal since 1997. You post is nonsense of a high order. Assisted suicide is decided on a state level.

1 hour ago, Emdog said:

The article is mainly about France, no mention of US laws. Brain dead? I am from Oregon, where assisted suicide has been legal since 1997. You post is nonsense of a high order. Assisted suicide is decided on a state level.

And I addressed the USA as a whole. Yes, I recognize Oregon as more enlightened and celebrate the state law. The current USA movement is to outlaw nationally our personal healthcare decision rights including euthanasia and now the attempt to rule Mifepristone as a water pollutant.

9 hours ago, FinChin67 said:

Kiano Vafaeian (26 years old, 2025/2026)
Young man with Type 1 diabetes and partial vision loss, plus mental health struggles. Denied MAiD in Ontario but approved in Vancouver by Dr. Ellen Wiebe. His mother says it was chosen over proper care and accuses the system of exploiting loopholes before mental illness expansion

Mrs. B (80s, Ontario, 2023)
Elderly woman with post-surgery complications. She withdrew her MAiD request citing religious beliefs and wanted palliative/hospice care. Her husband (experiencing caregiver burnout) pushed for reassessment. Approved and euthanized the same day despite concerns.

Tim Hortons assessment case (2024)
Man in his 40s with inflammatory bowel disease, substance abuse, mental illness, and social isolation. Assessment done outside a coffee shop; doctor then drove him to a cadaver storage facility for the lethal injection. Family not properly consulted.

Veterans offered MAiD
Multiple cases, including Paralympian Christine Gauthier (seeking wheelchair ramp help) and combat vets with PTSD. Caseworkers suggested assisted dying instead of support. Reports of 5–20+ such incidents.

Margaret Marsilla, mother of 26-yr-old Kiano Vafaeian, who Canada euthanized even after statements from several doctors who refused to approve MAID for him. "Luckily" Dr. Ellen Wiebe, aka “Dr. Death,” authorized it.

Same-day/next-day deaths
In Ontario 2023 alone, 65 same-day and 154 next-day MAiD provisions. Raises questions about rushed decisions, inadequate reflection, and pressure.

People citing poverty, homelessness fears, isolation, or lack of affordable housing (e.g., chemical sensitivity cases like "Sophia") + offers of MAiD in ERs, to disabled individuals, or instead of treatments.

Dr. Ellen Wiebe, aka “Dr. Death gets to be a state sanctioned murderer, gets paid by tax dollars and her victims come willingly to her because health care system pushes them to her. It's wildly unsettling.

Inadequate safeguards, expansion from terminal illness to broader suffering and societal failures being "solved" by death but anyways, go on. You can fill the void with Indians / refugees.

While official figures show the vast majority of people accessing Maid have terminal illnesses, critics worry that a small, but growing proportion of the cases reflect poverty and social inequality pushing people to end their lives.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/31/canada-medically-assisted-death-judge-ruling

Better Off Dead? - Liz Carr's documentary on assisted suicide

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEysXRLTG5M

Canadian doctor who has helped kill over 400 people speaks to Liz Carr for her BBC AS documentary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwJkFWKH18s

I'm sorry you have a problem with the suffering of others. Luckily, it's not your moralistic decision to make.

From Nova Scotia: If death is not foreseeable, there is a mandatory 90-day assessment period.

The waiting period started out at two weeks for terminal illnesses but it appears that there is no waiting period at present. Personally, if it were me, I'd rather get it over with.

I find it hard to believe, though, that any medical professional would not give MAiD applicants and their families to prepare and perhaps reconsider.

I do not believe in rushed decisions or inadequate reflection. It's literally a matter of life and death. I've already decided on my exit if I am suffering or incapacitated. I think the story of the old couple who took pentobarbital holding hands in a Chiang Mai hotel room is a beautiful story.

Families should, of course, be included. But many times they try to shake the patients choice due to their own needs not their loved one. In addition to making the decision to die, the MAiD candidate has the additional, unnecessary pressure from their family. Personally, it's my decision, no one else's. I would inform my family but not consult them.

Lastly, I think that ad must be fake. It's clearly not Canadian! I have the resources to do so. Will get back to you.

For further information on Canadian practice, see

https://www.canada.ca/en/sr/srb.html?q=MAiD&wb-srch-sub=

On 7/17/2026 at 8:06 AM, FinChin67 said:

Kiano Vafaeian (26 years old, 2025/2026)
Young man with Type 1 diabetes and partial vision loss, plus mental health struggles. Denied MAiD in Ontario but approved in Vancouver by Dr. Ellen Wiebe. His mother says it was chosen over proper care and accuses the system of exploiting loopholes before mental illness expansion

Mrs. B (80s, Ontario, 2023)
Elderly woman with post-surgery complications. She withdrew her MAiD request citing religious beliefs and wanted palliative/hospice care. Her husband (experiencing caregiver burnout) pushed for reassessment. Approved and euthanized the same day despite concerns.

Tim Hortons assessment case (2024)
Man in his 40s with inflammatory bowel disease, substance abuse, mental illness, and social isolation. Assessment done outside a coffee shop; doctor then drove him to a cadaver storage facility for the lethal injection. Family not properly consulted.

Veterans offered MAiD
Multiple cases, including Paralympian Christine Gauthier (seeking wheelchair ramp help) and combat vets with PTSD. Caseworkers suggested assisted dying instead of support. Reports of 5–20+ such incidents.

Margaret Marsilla, mother of 26-yr-old Kiano Vafaeian, who Canada euthanized even after statements from several doctors who refused to approve MAID for him. "Luckily" Dr. Ellen Wiebe, aka “Dr. Death,” authorized it.

Same-day/next-day deaths
In Ontario 2023 alone, 65 same-day and 154 next-day MAiD provisions. Raises questions about rushed decisions, inadequate reflection, and pressure.

People citing poverty, homelessness fears, isolation, or lack of affordable housing (e.g., chemical sensitivity cases like "Sophia") + offers of MAiD in ERs, to disabled individuals, or instead of treatments.

Dr. Ellen Wiebe, aka “Dr. Death gets to be a state sanctioned murderer, gets paid by tax dollars and her victims come willingly to her because health care system pushes them to her. It's wildly unsettling.

Inadequate safeguards, expansion from terminal illness to broader suffering and societal failures being "solved" by death but anyways, go on. You can fill the void with Indians / refugees.

While official figures show the vast majority of people accessing Maid have terminal illnesses, critics worry that a small, but growing proportion of the cases reflect poverty and social inequality pushing people to end their lives.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/31/canada-medically-assisted-death-judge-ruling

Better Off Dead? - Liz Carr's documentary on assisted suicide

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEysXRLTG5M

Canadian doctor who has helped kill over 400 people speaks to Liz Carr for her BBC AS documentary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwJkFWKH18s

Ah, yes, I've got to the source. The source for this fake ad is the Canadian satire page, The National Roast: https://x.com/NationalRoast/status/2025624240486261156 and https://www.facebook.com/groups/betterbc/posts/1416544523531714/

The banner mimics Canada's national conservative daily, The National Post. I esp liked these:

Of 4,169 total BC MAiD cases in, 72 per cent of these individuals died by MAiD; 23 per cent died of other causes, and 4 per cent were found ineligible to access MAiD. Only 1.4 per cent of individuals withdrew their request. 

I simply don't find 5% of deaths in Canada, or Netherlands or Switzerland to be surprising.

We have had inadequate pain control since countries didn't want patients to die addicted. Instead of managing patients' pain effectively. If pain control, including pharmaceutical heroin, were freely available to the terminally ill, some who consider MAiD may instead decide to stick around a little longer.

MAiD allows people to die at home with their loved ones by their own choice at their own time.

I am fully prepared. I have a Living Will which forbids resuscitation of any kind and forbids treatment for many other eventualities, e,.g., amputation. In Thai and English, duly witnessed by two doctors aso. And I have the means for a painless death.