Lawmaker’s in Belgium have announced plans to propose an extension of the country’s euthanasia law to allow the
procedure for those under the age of 18, according to a report by Expatica in the Netherlands.
”Those under the age of 18 feel pain in exactly the same way as their elders,” Flemish Liberal Senator Jeannine Le-Duc told the Gazet van Antwerpen.
Francophone politicians say they’re open to the idea of a discussion about reducing the age to 16, but no less.
”Euthanasia for a seven-year-old kid – there’s no way,” Liberal Senator Philippe Monfils told La Libre Belgique.
Last week, negotiators forming Belgium’s new government called for every hospital across the country to have a team of doctors prepared to administer euthanasia to adults. The move was designed to counter opposition by some Catholic hospitals that have reportedly refused to permit assisted suicide on their premises.
Doctors will be given a protected status for performing euthanasia, which was was legalized in Belgium last year.
One lawmaker said euthanasia is the business of a doctor and a patient, and hospitals should not interfere.
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