Daniel Andrews defends ‘conservative’ new assisted dying laws
Premier Daniel Andrews says that terminally ill Victorians can now have a ‘good death’ by legally ending their lives under the nation’s only euthanasia laws, which came into effect today. Depending on who you talk to, allowing assisted dying is either a great leap forward or a slippery slope that will lead to all sorts of disastrous outcomes. Andrews said that ’68 different safeguards’ are in place to ensure the laws aren’t abused and that the person choosing to die is aware of the decision they’re making.
‘It is on any measure the most conservative model anywhere in the world’, he said.
‘There can be no coercion, doctors can’t suggest this – patients have to ask for it, there is a very strict criteria to determine which patients might be eligible’.
Patients must be at least 18 years old and have lived in Victoria for 12 months.
‘You need to be suffering a terminal condition, be in the terminal stage and be expected to pass away within six months’, Premier Andrews continued.
Source: Sunrise