Active euthanasia should be introduced in Denmark, according to a nearly unanimous group that has investigated the matter on the government's behalf.
Seven out of eight investigators on the Committee for a More Dignified Death believe that Danish law should be changed so that people are given the opportunity to decide for themselves how their lives should end.
The Committee is to produce a basis that will "help to nuance" the government's decision on a "Danish model for a more dignified death". The group includes, among others, a priest, a person working in elderly care, a representative of patient organisations, and professors of health law and moral philosophy.
They differ slightly on what should be legalised. Four of them believe it should be possible to prescribe lethal doses of medication within palliative care. Two believe that doctors should be allowed to help patients take medication that ends their lives. One investigator believes it should be possible to enter into agreements with relatives to help end one's life in such a case.
One person believes the law should not be changed. Two people who previously sat on the Committee left earlier this year in protest, as they believed the selection was too heavily weighted towards a positive view of euthanasia.
I, like a large majority of Danes, am personally a strong advocate of introducing active euthanasia in Denmark, said Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen (S) in a speech last summer.
