Voluntary euthanasia

Voluntary euthanasia is the purposeful ending of another person's life at their request, in order to relieve them of <a href="/facts/Suffering/gDdgz4lj">suffering</a>. Voluntary <a href="/facts/Euthanasia/aYfNlLna">euthanasia</a> and <a href="/facts/Physician-assisted_suicide/5g1L0wQy">physician-assisted suicide</a> (PAS) have been the focus of intense debate in the 21st century, surrounding the idea of a <a href="/facts/Right_to_die/Q4p6b7rJ">right to die</a>. Some forms of voluntary euthanasia are legal in <a href="/facts/Australia/qLHpbppq">Australia</a>, <a href="/facts/Belgium/YKuMXP5j">Belgium</a>, <a href="/facts/Canada/cWWFM8oc">Canada</a>, <a href="/facts/Colombia/nl7r8Q2u">Colombia</a>, <a href="/facts/Luxembourg/vRN04l7f">Luxembourg</a>, the <a href="/facts/Euthanasia_in_the_Netherlands/csj0shXK">Netherlands</a>, <a href="/facts/New_Zealand/4mpSlJdg">New Zealand</a>, and <a href="/facts/Spain/bIyrB8EY">Spain</a>.
Voluntary <a href="/facts/Terminal_dehydration/BFxEFWl1">refusal of food and fluids</a> (VRFF), also called voluntarily stopping eating and drinking (VSED) or <a href="/facts/Terminal_illness/brGbbwLL">Patient Refusal of Nutrition and Hydration</a> (PRNH), will similarly result in death. Some authors classify this voluntary action as a form of passive euthanasia, while others treat it separately because it is treated differently from legal point of view, and often perceived as a more <a href="/facts/Ethical/wNVNgL5q">ethical</a> option. VRFF is sometimes suggested as a legal alternative to euthanasia in jurisdictions disallowing euthanasia.

Voluntary euthanasia open-in-new

Voluntary euthanasia