The Swiss Medical Association (SMA) stiffened regulations on assisted suicide this week.
More input from doctors is required in the new guidelines. There must be at least 2 doctor-patient meetings. Patients must also show that their pain is unbearable. Such procedures should also be well recorded. Healthy people are effectively barred from obtaining assisted suicide under the new guidelines.
SMA directives are not required by law to be followed. Medical professionals, on the other hand, have to follow them or face disciplinary action. The most recent directives take precedence over those in 2018. This PDF's section on assisted suicide begins on page 22. (6.2.1).
Institutions that provide assisted suicide have expressed shock. Organizations such as Dignitas, Exit, and Life Circle are vehemently opposing the changes. As per them, these new directives place significant obstacles in the way of assisted suicide. According to Jean-Jacques Bise, co-head of Exit in French-spoken Switzerland, the new rules will be difficult to implement, due to the severity of certain requests, having two interviews with a doctor is unrealistic.