Euthanasia is legalized in European countries such as Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Spain.
The Austrian Parliament approved yesterday Thursday the legalization of assisted suicide for people suffering from a serious or incurable disease, in response to a court decision who considered that the current prohibition violated fundamental rights.
A year ago, the Constitutional Court ordered the government to review the legislation that punished helping to die with a penalty that could go up to five years in prison.
According to the text, which had the support of all the parties except the far-right formation FPÖ, adults in a terminal phase or suffering from a permanent and debilitating illness may have help to commit suicide.
Two doctors (one of them specialized in palliative medicine) should evaluate each case. They should determine if the patient is capable of making the decision independently.
The 7 countries in the world where euthanasia is legal (and what is the situation in Latin America)
In addition, there will have to be a period of twelve weeks until the suicide aid is accepted, in the event that the applicant had experienced a temporary crisis.
This period will be shortened to two weeks for patients in the “terminal phase” of an illness.
Justice Minister Alma Zadic (Greens) considered that the law allows human dignity, according to the APA press agency. In addition, a budget of 108 million euros was approved for palliative care, to ensure that “no one chooses death if there are other possibilities”.
Euthanasia is legalized in other European countries such as Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Spain. In South America, only Colombia allows active euthanasia. (I)
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