March 25, 2025
Euthanasia Trends Upwards in the Netherlands
Last year, a total of 9,958 euthanasia cases were registered with the review committees reports Eva Klute for de Volkskrant.
This increase can be partially explained by the ageing population, but the number of euthanasia notifications also rose in relation to the total mortality rate: from 5.4 to 5.8 percent.
There is no reason to believe that the steady growth will come to an end any time soon, the RTEs write in the foreword to the annual report.
Physical conditions
The vast majority of euthanasia notifications (86 percent) involved people with common physical conditions such as cancer, nervous system problems and/or cardiovascular disease.
In 427 cases, euthanasia was administered to a patient with some form of dementia.
In 219 cases, the wish for euthanasia was (largely) the result of one or more psychological conditions, in 2023 there were 138 such cases.
The number of people who choose voluntary euthanasia due to hopeless psychological suffering has steadily increased over the past five years.
Concerns about this eligibility criterion have been present in some parts of the Lower House for some time.
Last October, the government party NSC wrote an initiative memorandum to put euthanasia among young people on the agenda.
Former member of parliament Rosanne Hertzberger noted at the time a shift in the number of young people who want to end their lives due to severe psychological suffering.
The latest figures from the RTE show that in 2024 there were thirty reports in the 18 to 30 age category.
Due diligence requirements
Since the introduction of the euthanasia law in 2002, the total number of euthanasia reports in the Netherlands has increased fivefold.
This trend is also raising questions in the political world in The Hague.
Last month, Radboud University Medical Center announced that it would be launching a study on behalf of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport.
Together with researchers from University Medical Centres in Utrecht and Amsterdam, the study will examine the ethical and social aspects of the current euthanasia policy.
The Regional Euthanasia Review Committees investigate whether a physician who has performed euthanasia has complied with the due care criteria.
The review committees are divided into five regions and consist of at least nine members: three lawyers, physicians and ethicists.
The committees operate independently of ministers, politics and third parties.
The committees account for their activities in the past year in their annual report.