Easing Medical Stipulations for Assisted Suicide in Switzerland

by | June 14, 2018 | News

On June 6, 2018, the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences (“ASSM”), updated and revised the 2004 guidelines for their “Position on the End-of-Life and Death“. One of the directives given by this organization, responsible for establishing ethical regulations for Swiss health professionals is intended to ease medical stipulations for assisted suicide.
Previously, Swiss doctors could only prescribe lethal substances for patients facing imminent death. With the new “end-of-life” stipulations, doctors will be able to propose assisted suicide to their patients enduring “unbearable suffering due to symptoms from their disease and / or functional limitations”.  This new criterion will comes in replacement of the “end of life” criterion.
With more than 40,000 members and federating over 70 medical organizations, the Federation of Swiss Doctors (“FMH”), is opposed to the new guidelines. Their president, Jürg Schlup, declared: “this new guideline is vague and could lead to misinterpretations within the Deontology Commission. This is particularly serious for such an irreversible decision.” This new version for the code of ethics may not be recommended even though the association is determined to carefully examine the situation.
Samia Hurst, as member of the sub-commission who drafted these end-of-life guidelines, admits that “unbearable suffering” is subjective. “After taking the patient’s case history into account and examining the patient on numerous occasions, the doctor must determine if the suffering is indeed unbearable. Regardless of his conclusions, the doctor still has the right and freedom to refuse to provide suicide assistance. He remains free to do so. It  cannot be imposed upon him. “
The Bioethics Committee of the Swiss Bishops’ Conference pointed out a very serious switch in these new guidelines because they are in absolute contradiction with current medical ethics and even alter the purpose of medicine itself. Every single caregiver would be in a position to decide whether assisted suicide “is medically indicated or not“. Until now, the guidelines unequivocally stated that assisted suicide was not defined as a medical activity since “it is contradictory to medical objectives“.
In the past few years, the number of assisted suicides has risen sharply in Switzerland. The Swiss Health Observatory notes that “Compared to other countries, and to other health problems, in Switzerland, death by suicide is an often underestimated public health problem. In Europe Switzerland has an above-average suicide rate.”
Recall: Under certain conditions, assisted suicide is allowed in Switzerland, under Penal Code, Article 115, which prohibits encouraging or assisting suicide for “selfish reasons“. Euthanasia remains unlawful.
The Confederation has recognized the ASSM, i.e. the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences, as “an institute for promoting research”. It is namely in of the task of examining ethical issues. The Central Ethics Commission of the ASSM defines medico-ethical guidelines which are usually added to the Swiss Federation of Medical Practitioners’ Code of Ethics.

[Press Release] ART and Children’s Rights: A warning from Alliance VITA

[Press Release] ART and Children’s Rights: A warning from Alliance VITA

by | June 12, 2018 | Medically Assisted Procreation, Press Releases

Throughout France today, Alliance VITA members staged a symbolic event to help citizens realize the risks that the “ART for all” project entail for children’s rights.

Alliance VITA’s national awareness campaign was launched simultaneously in 60 French cities at 1:00 pm on Tuesday, June 12, 2018, to warn against impetuously plunging into the reproductive business.

For the past 6 months, the French National Bioethics Consultations have been focused on “ART for all” or ” ART without a father”. Since this technique ignores children’s rights, VITA’s awareness campaign is resolved to focus on children’s rights, which are at risk.

For the event a large barcode is imprinted on a baby, sitting alone in an adult’s chair, surrounded by anonymous men and women lying on the ground, wearing white masks, and dressed in black mourning attire. The signs say: “ART: Goodbye Daddy”; “ART: Goodbye Mom”, to illustrate the unfair and immediate effect the government’s project would inflict on children.

The headline on the banner proclaims: “No ART business”, and in the presence of supporters wearing Alliance VITA T-shirts and carrying signs, the spokesman gave a speech to launch the awareness campaign.

If ART is legalized in France for reasons other than medically-diagnosed infertility, it would allow single women and female couples access to sperm donations, and thus children intentionally deprived of their father could be conceived. And there are already so many children who are suffering from their father’s absence, and so many women who are struggling to raise their children alone!

If the law is passed to allow “ART for all”, on non-discrimination grounds, male couples would claim access to surrogacy to obtain a child, which would deliberately deprive children from having a mother.

If it is admitted that there is such a thing as a right to have a child, then human procreation would be changed into a market, whether private or state controlled, which would regard men and women as producers of raw materials – oocytes, sperm, uterus – in order to conceive a child on request, and even designer babies.

The shift from “children’s rights” to “the right to a child”, would change children into products which can be bought and would take us even closer to eugenics in order to check, to sort, to validate, to eliminate this “product”, like any other products.

The International Convention on the Rights of the Child recognizes the right of the child to know and be cared for by his parents in as far as possible. As a country responsible for defending human rights, France must encourage the rest of the international community to take a stand against Anglo-Saxon utilitarianism, which tends to consider human beings and their body products as commercial items.

Alliance VITA insists that if ART is legally permitted for those who do not fill the medical infertility criterion, a red boundary line would be violated. This calls for mobilizing society on a widespread basis to protect children and the best interest of the child.

French Government’s Plan for Loss of Autonomy in Old Age

by | June 7, 2018 | Old age and Dependency

In response to the alarming reports and various social movements’ reclamations on the critical situation in French nursing homes (“EHPAD’s), Agnès Buzyn the Health and Solidarity Minister presented the Government’s plan for the elderly, following the efforts undertaken by the French National Solidarity Fund for Autonomy (“CNSA”) and the Assembly of French Departments on May 30.
Last year, there were 1.5 million inhabitants over 85 years old in France, but by 2050 they will number up to 4.8 million. Based on these figures, the Health Minister has declared some emergency measures which are intended to help improve the quality of life and the autonomy for the elderly.
The government’s priority will mainly focus on prevention, both at home and in institutions. In 2018, 15 million € will be allocated, followed by 30 million € starting in 2019, for prevention policies in nursing homes which the regional health agencies will oversee. Opinion surveys in the nursing homes to verify the appropriate measures will be carried out by the High Authority for Health (“HAS”). In addition, strategic measures will be implemented to address the ever-increasing needs for medical care.

  • 360 million € will be attributed to the French nursing homes “EPHAD’s” from 2019 to 2021 to recruit additional nursing staff.
  • 36 million € will be budgeted for hiring night shift nurses, on a standard basis by 2020, to reduce cases of preventable admissions to the ER, and ensure appropriate night care.
  • 40 million € will be allocated from 2018-2022, in order to install widespread and standardized access to telemedicine for the “EHPAD’s”.
  • 15 million € will be financed by health insurance plans, starting in 2019, to add 1,000 temporary beds to the existing “EHPAD’s” for patients being discharged from hospital in order to facilitate their return home.
  • A minimum of 100 million € in the annual budget, starting in 2019 will be given to help renovate the “EHPAD’s”
  • 16 million € will be allocated by 2020 to reinforce the number and the mobility of geriatric personnel.

Other strategies are being developed to encourage home care by adapting living spaces, and proposing support for home care-givers, but also measures for improving work conditions for professionals in nursing homes.
Despite the fact that the government has promised a substantial financial budget, various professionals in health care for the ageing maintain that these strategies only partially respond to the challenge of caring for the ageing population. The French Professional Federation of Directors of Health Care Establishments for the Ageing (“FNADEPA”) laments the lack of commitment to reinforcing human resources, encouraging the fidelity of professional heath caregivers, and tackling the need for better professional recognition. One of the most critical issues involves how to increase the number of caregivers compared to the number of patients. Yet, the financial budget announced will not attain the recommended ratio of 60 carers per 100 patients (as recommended by the MPs Monique Iborra and Caroline Fiat’s report for the “EHPAD” crisis situation (March 2018).
After having announced these initial measures, the Health and Solidarity Minister now intends to open a national discussion to obtain a larger input from health professionals and French citizens, and reflect on the situation: how can society respond to aging and funding care for the elderly who lose their autonomy. The stated objective is to formulate proposals before 2019. To avert discussions uniquely based on financial constraints, the minister urges a reflection based on the following questions:

  • How do we define our future priorities for the elderly, confronted with the loss of autonomy, and based on accessible goods and services?
  • How can we ensure contributions from all spheres of society to sustain funding, based on solidarity, when facing the loss of autonomy?
  • How can national and territorial government policies be modified to protect the ageing population and their loss of autonomy?
[Press Release] French Bioethics: Warning against commodification of the human body

[Press Release] French Bioethics: Warning against commodification of the human body

by | June 5, 2018 | Bioethics, Medically Assisted Procreation, Press Releases

In the past few months, Alliance VITA has been invited to speak before the French National Consultative Ethics Committee (NCEC), the National Medical Academy, the Economic, Social and Environmental Council, and the Council of State. Now, on June 5th, Alliance VITA takes note of the report issued for the French National Bioethics Consultations.

Among the topics discussed, a lot of attention has been focused on allowing single women or female couples access to ART. Nonetheless, Alliance VITA contends that infertility should be treated as a national public health issue, both for infertility prevention and for research, which could thereby trigger genuine therapeutic treatments.

But if women can access to ART for other reasons than for medical infertility, quite the reverse would happen. Actually, this would be an unprecedented deviation towards a human reproduction market, whether private or state controlled. In this reproductive business, men and women are regarded as laborers and producers of raw materials – oocytes, sperm, uterus – in order to produce infants, or even customized babies.

Alliance VITA cannot but acknowledge the convictions expressed throughout the participatory process: a high number of citizens have argued in favor of preserving reproduction based on alterity. Only a small minority have requested modifying the bioethics law on this point.

The point has now arrived when the politicians must voice their opinion. French President, Macron has stated his commitment for a peaceful discussion and it would be difficult to understand the politicians if they do not take into account the results of the National Bioethics Consultations.

As technology continues to progress, Alliance VITA voices its global vision  of reproduction and alerts against a human reproductive market composed of eugenic, unjust, and even totalitarian aspects which must be taken seriously.

In the coming days, Alliance VITA will launch a number of actions to inform the public and get people involved on these major issues, which affect our humanity and our future. France, as a country concerned about human dignity and opposed to the commodification of the human body and of its products, has a particular role to play in this field.

Portuguese Parliament Rejects Euthanasia Bill

by | May 30, 2018 | News

On Tuesday May 29, 2018, Portugal’s parliament rejected a bill to make euthanasia and assisted suicide legal.
MP’s voted to reject all 4 bills presented, including one from the Socialist Party who has the majority vote. Other bills were presented by the Greens, the far-left group (Left-Bloc) and the Party for People-Animals-Nature.
On the right, the conservative Social Democrat Party (center-right) did not give any voting instructions, leaving the MP’s to vote according to their conscience, while the right-wing minority party stated their opposition to all 4 draft bills.
The Communist Party declared its’ opposition to any form of legal euthanasia or assisted suicide. Their manifesto stated that social progress for society does not consist in renouncing one’s responsibilities by causing death in an expeditious manner, but rather by “providing the conditions to live in dignity, deploying all the means and possibilities for social order, science and technology to overcome suffering and sickness, and by ensuring social inclusion and support for the family. “
A recent survey, sponsored by the forum “Think and Debate” (Pensar & Debater), revealed that the vast majority of respondents (89%) prefer investing in palliative care rather than legalizing euthanasia.