Euthanasia for Alzheimer's patient in Netherlands
November 10, 2011
A 64-year-old woman has been put to death by her doctors in the Netherlands, without giving her explicit consent for the "mercy killing."
The woman, whose name was not revealed, had suffered from Alzheimer's disease, and her mental condition had deteriorated to the point at which she could not give consent for euthanasia.
Ordinarily the explicit consent of the patient is required for euthanasia in the Netherlands--where the practice has been legal since 2002--but in this case the patient's consent was presumed, since doctors said that the woman had been an advocate of legal euthanasia in the past.
For all current news, visit our News home page.
Further information:
- Netherlands Performs Euthanasia On Woman With Dementia (Huffington Post)
- First euthanasia in Netherlands of severe Alzheimer’s patient performed (AFP)
All comments are moderated. To lighten our editing burden, only current donors are allowed to Sound Off. If you are a current donor, log in to see the comment form; otherwise please support our work, and Sound Off!