00:00France's Assisted Dying Bill, Claims vs Facts
00:08French President Emmanuel Macron pledged to introduce an Assisted Dying Law after his re-election in 2022.
00:14Since then, the proposed law has faced intense criticism, focusing mainly on its eligibility criteria,
00:21which some opulents describe as too broad or insufficiently defined.
00:25On X, there has been a range of conflicting claims too.
00:28For example, users suggest the end-of-life bill could allow people suffering from depression to access euthanasia.
00:33So what does the draft law actually say?
00:36According to the text, access to medical assistance in dying requires constant, intolerable, physical or psychological suffering
00:42that is incorrigible and linked to a serious condition.
00:46At first glance, the wording raises questions.
00:48In the initial version of the bill, the text was explicit.
00:51Psychological suffering alone could never justify access to assistance in dying.
00:56In the current version, that provision has been removed.
00:59So what exactly does psychological suffering mean in this context?
01:03This week, I met for the first time a patient who, after the mammography, finds a cancer of the skin.
01:08For sure, for this patient, the announcement of this disease, already evolved, is a terrible effect in her life,
01:14knowing that she has no symptoms, but that she discovered this cancer on a routine exam.
01:18This discovery has been placed in a situation of great psychological distress, and so she has both a serious and
01:24advanced disease and a psychological distress
01:25which can give her access to euthanasia before the treatments or treatments have been offered.
01:31French lawmakers insist that applicants must meet all five main eligibility criteria set out in the bill.
01:38On the 4th of February, the National Assembly Social Affairs Committee approved a revised bill to establish the right to
01:44assisted dying.
01:45With more debates and votes scheduled for February, the President of the National Assembly hopes the law will be fully
01:51adopted before the summer.
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