The President of the Republic, Luis Lacalle Pou, said that he is “in favor of studying” the bill that legalizes euthanasia and assisted suicide for terminally ill patients presented by the Colorado deputy, Ope Pasquet in early 2020.
“It is a very delicate subject, it is an issue that the approach that I do is about my own life and not about the lives of others, which I would like for myself personally. It is a matter of philosophical doubt. A priori, I am in favor of studying it“, he said this Sunday at a press conference in Salto where he traveled to observe an inclusive soccer tournament.
The president was also consulted on euthanasia and said that he is “in favor of studying” the bill presented by Colorado deputy Ope Pasquet. pic.twitter.com/HsPTb7F1tv
– Telemundo (@TelemundoUY) November 14, 2021
The project was one of the first to be presented in this legislature and is being studied by the Health Commission of Deputies.
In August 2020, a survey of Consulting Teams commissioned by the Uruguayan Medical Union (SMU) showed that 82% of doctors agree with allowing active euthanasia “under the proposed conditions”.
The concept refers to the practice in which the doctor “kills” the patient who so requests because of a terminal illness.
58% of those surveyed agreed with medically assisted suicide in which the patient asks his doctor to provide him with the means to end his life.
Despite the high approval of the incorporation of active euthanasia into the legislation, four out of five consulted considered it necessary for the text to include the possibility of filing conscientious objection, which implies that due to their own values or principles the doctor can refuse to take go ahead with the practice requested by your patient.