End of life: what does “advanced or terminal phase” condition mean which replaces “involved vital prognosis” in the bill ?

Déplacement de Mme Catherine Vautrin, ministre du Travail, de la Sante et des Solidarités à l'unité des soins palliatifs de l'Hôpital Paul Brousse de l'Assistance Publique des Hôpitaux de Paris. MAXPPP – Luc Nobout

Until the summer of 2025, the end-of-life bill will be the subject of parliamentary debates. A text which raises concerns and which aims to offer assisted dying for the first time. Having one's vital prognosis engaged was one of the main conditions of this aid, which has been amended. Let's take a closer look at what it's being replaced by.

The French National Assembly is examining a bill on the end of life from this Monday, May 27, providing for the first time in France a  "assisted dying" for certain patients, not without raising concerns and divisions.

"Vital prognosis"

Several conditions are debated. Among these conditions is being affected by a "serious and incurable condition in an advanced or terminal phase", be of legal age, able to express one's will in a free and informed manner, and present suffering that is refractory to treatment or unbearable, indicates the AFP.

This notion of '"serious and incurable condition in advanced or terminal phase"  replaced the criterion according to which patients had to have their "vital prognosis engaged in the short or medium term", to access on assisted dying, Thursday, May 16, during an examination of the bill.

If this change may give the impression of playing on words, opponents of this amendment deplore the disappearance of the notion of vital prognosis, which makes certain deputies fear the possibilities of broadening the scope of this amendment. law enforcement, explains France Info.

The notion of end of life

Didier Martin, the Renaissance rapporteur of the law deplored the removal of the notion of vital prognosis, recalling that for him, "assisted dying can only be considered at the end of life", report our colleagues.

However, behind the terms "serious and incurable condition in advanced or terminal phase", there is indeed a question of vital prognosis since it is exactly in these terms that the website of the public assistance of hospitals of Paris (APHP) defines the "end of life" in an article devoted to this notion.

Après 100h d’auditions et de débats, la commission spéciale a voté le PJL Fin de vie. Il prévoit notamment le droit à une aide à mourir en cas d’affection grave et incurable en phase avancée ou terminale et de souffrances physiques et psychologiques réfractaires ou insupportables pic.twitter.com/496i7mRf8k

— Olivier Falorni (@OlivierFalorni) May 18, 2024

At the end of the examination in committee, Olivier Falorni, the Modem deputy who is the general rapporteur of this text, defended this amendment, recalling that "serious and incurable defines that your vital prognosis is not only compromised but it is even seriously, very seriously compromised. And the advanced or terminal phase reinforces this system.