National Assembly to Make Final Decision on Right to Assisted Dying

Paris – 15/07/2026: The National Assembly will make a final decision this Wednesday, in a ceremonial closing vote, on the bill intended to create a right to assisted dying under strict conditions. After more than two years of parliamentary deliberations, the lower house has the final say because deputies and senators were unable to agree on a joint text.

For people who are seriously and incurably ill and could potentially fall under the provisions, the vote is more than an institutional process. In accounts from those affected, the focus is not on a wish to die, but on having control over a final phase of life perceived as unbearable. From this perspective, the proposed option is intended to give them a choice, not impose an obligation.

The text applies to adults with a serious and incurable illness affecting their life expectancy. They must also experience physical or psychological suffering considered impossible to treat by other means, and be capable of expressing a free and informed wish. The decision is to be assessed through a medical procedure; in principle, the lethal substance is intended to be self-administered.

Only if the person concerned is physically unable to do so may the substance be administered by another person. In its most recent reading, the National Assembly also strengthened the initial medical consultation and the requirements for expressing consent. An independent commission is to review cases after the fact. In this way, lawmakers are seeking to reconcile self-determination with protection against pressure or abuse.

The proposal separates the political debate on assisted dying from the simultaneously adopted reform of palliative care. The reform is intended to improve access to support and pain treatment nationwide. Supporters stress that high-quality palliative medicine and the new exceptional option are not opposites. Critics, however, argue that such a socially sensitive authorization must not be introduced in a health system where end-of-life care remains unevenly developed across regions.

The Senate had rejected the core of the proposal and later did not seek further consideration of the text. The parliamentary process therefore culminates in the National Assembly’s final decision on July 15. On June 30, deputies had already adopted the proposal in a new reading by 295 votes to 232. Today’s vote concerns the final version and should not be equated with that previous result.

Even if adopted, the political and legal dispute would not be over. Senate President Gerard Larcher has announced that he will refer the matter to the Constitutional Council. For those directly affected, however, the debate remains concrete: it concerns whether rights until the end of life are determined solely by medical care and existing patient rights, or whether the law permits an additional personal choice under clearly defined conditions.