Spain’s Parliament has voted to approve a Bill that will allow medic-assisted suicide and euthanasia for long-suffering patients of incurable diseases or unbearable permanent conditions.
The Bill, which was backed by Spain’s left-wing coalition government and several other parties, passed in a 198-138 vote.
The conservative Popular Party and the far-right Vox party voted “No”.
As a society, we cannot remain impassive when faced with the intolerable pain that many people suffer
Spanish Health Minister Salvador Illa
The Bill will now continue its legislative journey, facing a vote in the Senate, where it is also expected to pass.
SANT SADURNÍ D’ANOIA, Spain (AP) Like most Spaniards, Emma Gaya thought the worst of the pandemic was behind her.
Spain’s government had ended a three-month lockdown after an COVID-19 onslaught that claimed at least 28,400 lives in the European Union nation. To kickstart its stalled economy, Spaniards were encouraged to cautiously resume their lives under a “new normality” based on wearing face masks, washing hands and social distancing.
The respite didn’t last long.
Outbreaks among farm workers and young people desperate to resume socializing after being cooped up have spread across northern Spain, spawning what some health officials fear could be the start of a dreaded “second wave” of infections.