Over 1,100 people have been euthanized by Belgian authorities for ailments that are not immediately terminal. In 2025, euthanasia deaths jumped 12.4% from last year. They accounted for 4% of all national deaths.
Belgium Euthanized Over 1,100 People for Common Ailments in 2025 as Assisted Killing Surges to Record High– slaynews.com
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Belgium euthanized more than 1,100 people suffering from common ailments whose deaths were not expected in the short term in 2025, a new government report reveals, as the country’s assisted death regime reaches record levels.
The Federal Commission for the Control and Evaluation reports that 1,117 deaths, 24.9% of all registered euthanasia cases, involved patients who were not approaching an imminent death.
The findings expose how far the practice extends beyond terminal patients in their final days, encompassing chronic conditions, psychiatric illness, and cognitive disorders such as dementia.
Belgium recorded 4,486 euthanasia deaths in 2025, a 12.4% increase from the previous year and approximately 4% of all deaths nationwide.
Nearly One in Four Were Not Facing Imminent Death
The commission’s report identifies more than a quarter of the registered cases as involving people whose deaths were not “expected in the short term.”
Those patients had conditions described as incurable, including multiple chronic ailments common among older people.
Some cases involved psychiatric or cognitive conditions.
Although most people euthanized were elderly, the 2025 figures also include a teenager.
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