French National Assembly completes third reading of assisted dying bill

From left to right, general rapporteur Philippe Vigier, president of the social affairs committee Frédéric Valletoux, and minister delegate for autonomy and disability Camille Galliard-Minier at the National Assembly in Paris on June 26, 2026. JULIEN MUGUET FOR "LE MONDE"

Deputies completed the third review of a bill on end-of-life on Saturday, June 27, ahead of a vote scheduled in the Hemicycle on Tuesday, June 30, and a final adoption set for July 15. A flagship promise of Emmanuel Macron's second term, the text creates a right to assisted dying accessible under conditions to certain patients suffering from a serious and incurable condition.

Since Monday, deputies have examined over 1,800 amendments, of which only 23 were adopted. General rapporteur Philippe Vigier (MoDem) and his co-rapporteurs worked to preserve the balances from the previous reading in the Assembly, believing they were best suited to secure a majority.

The version to be submitted for a vote on Tuesday should, in principle, constitute the final copy, with the Senate most likely heading toward rejection, as in the two previous examinations, and deputies no longer able to introduce amendments in the final reading.

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Throughout the week, supporters and opponents of the bill—the latter found primarily on the right and far-right benches, though not exclusively—again ardently debated the criteria opening the right to assisted dying, the details of the procedure, and also semantics, with the words "assisted suicide" and "euthanasia" not appearing in the text, much to the dismay of its detractors.

Modalities of Assisted Dying

In his final speech, Les Républicains deputy Thibault Bazin (Meurthe-et-Moselle) said he left the debates "with a certain vertigo," deeming the criteria "not strict enough," the procedure "not sufficiently regulated," the "deadlines too short," and regretting "insufficient guarantees for persons under protective measures." Rassemblement National (RN) deputy Christophe Bentz said he hoped to have convinced "especially hesitant and undecided deputies that, out of precaution and prudence, this text should not be voted on."

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"The National Assembly has risen to its task," said Mr. Vigier, saying he reserved his "thoughts for the patients who were waiting so much for us to be capable of having a new right to die."

One of the most debated points was who should administer the lethal substance, between the patient or a caregiver. The initial text made self-administration the rule and euthanasia the exception, when the requester is "physically unable to do so."

Many deputies wanted to leave the patient free to choose, but the Assembly ultimately restored the original spirit of the text. RN deputies succeeded in having an amendment adopted stipulating that only a nurse, and not a doctor, could perform the administration. However, the Assembly reversed this vote during a second deliberation on Saturday.

In line with the rapporteurs' wishes, a majority of deputies opposed the reinstatement of an offense of obstruction of assisted dying, modeled on the offense of obstruction of voluntary termination of pregnancy (IVG), as well as the reinstatement of an offense of incitement. In a gesture of appeasement...