More and more Belgians opt for euthanasia

Belgian municipalities last year registered 24,360 living wills for euthanasia, report the Sudpresse newspapers today based on figures from Federal Public Health. That's 3,946 more than in 2013.

A mentally competent adult can have a living will drawn up in advance to explicitly request voluntary euthanasia in the event that he or she should experience unbearable suffering, mental or physical.

This has led to a rise in the number of living wills, as well as the number of will revisions. In 2014, the municipalities received 2,872 revisions, while there were just 1,579 the previous year.

Withdrawals of a living will are rare: 45 cases in 2014, compared to 29 in 2013.