[Access requirements for medically assisted death: an open question.]

Abstract

The commentary focuses on the requirements for access to medical assistance in dying in countries where this practice is legal. It shows that the different solutions adopted reflect a different balance between the principles of protection of life, reduction of suffering and respect for autonomy. The article also analyses the potential ethical problems associated with the decision-making capacity of psychiatric patients. It emphasizes the need to assess the capacity on a case-by-case basis, without a priori excluding those suffering from mental disorders. It then examines the nature of existential suffering as a potential single condition for access to medical assistance in dying, highlighting its relevant ethical and social implications.