Belgium’s expanding use of euthanasia is raising serious questions about the protection of vulnerable people, particularly the elderly, those living with chronic illnesses, and individuals experiencing psychiatric conditions. New government figures reveal that nearly one-quarter of euthanasia cases recorded in 2025 involved patients who were not considered to be approaching death.
According to a report from Belgium’s Federal Commission for the Control and Evaluation of Euthanasia, 1,117 people who underwent euthanasia in 2025 were classified as having conditions for which death was not “expected in the short term.” These cases represented 24.9 percent of all registered euthanasia deaths that year.
The findings underscore a troubling reality for Catholic advocates of human dignity and the sanctity of life. In Belgium, euthanasia is not limited to individuals facing imminent death, but can also involve people living with incurable conditions who may otherwise have years of life ahead of them.
According to LifeSiteNews, the cases involving non-terminal patients included individuals suffering from chronic illnesses, dementia, and psychiatric or cognitive conditions. Although the majority of those who died through euthanasia were elderly, the 2025 figures also included a teenager.
Belgium legalized euthanasia in 2002, becoming one of the first countries in the world to permit the practice. In 2014, the country expanded its legislation to include minors who meet specific legal requirements, including having the “capacity of discernment.”
The latest figures also reveal a continued increase in euthanasia deaths nationwide.
As previously reported by LifeSiteNews, Belgium registered a record 4,486 euthanasia deaths in 2025, an increase of 12.4 percent compared with the previous year. These deaths accounted for approximately four percent of all deaths recorded in the country.
The increase becomes even more striking when compared with the early years of legalization. In 2003, the first full year after euthanasia became legal, Belgium recorded 235 cases. Since legalization, more than 42,000 people have died through euthanasia in the country.
Another concerning finding involves the review process used to evaluate reported euthanasia cases.
According to the federal commission’s report, 85.6 percent of cases reviewed in 2025 were accepted at the initial examination without requests for additional information from the reporting physician. That figure increased from 80 percent in 2024.
The remaining cases required further clarification or documentation, but none resulted in a referral for prosecution, according to LifeSiteNews’ account of the report.
These figures raise important questions about the effectiveness of safeguards intended to protect patients, particularly those whose medical conditions do not indicate that death is imminent. The commission’s review of reported cases also highlights the distinction between examining whether legal requirements were followed and determining whether vulnerable individuals received sufficient support and alternatives before euthanasia occurred.
For the Catholic Church, the moral concern extends beyond the circumstances of any individual case.
Catholic teaching firmly rejects euthanasia because every human life possesses inherent dignity, regardless of age, disability, illness, or dependence on others. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches in paragraph 2277 that “Whatever its motives and means, direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable.”
At the same time, the Church recognizes the profound suffering experienced by people with serious illnesses and emphasizes the importance of compassionate medical care, effective pain management, emotional support, and spiritual accompaniment.
Catholic teaching also distinguishes euthanasia from the legitimate decision to refuse extraordinary or disproportionate medical treatment when such treatment no longer offers reasonable benefit. Allowing natural death while providing appropriate care is fundamentally different from deliberately causing death.
The Belgian statistics bring renewed attention to this distinction, especially as euthanasia increasingly involves people who are not considered terminally ill.
For Catholics, the growing number of deaths presents a broader moral challenge concerning how society responds to suffering, disability, loneliness, and the needs of the elderly.
The Church calls for a culture in which those facing illness or vulnerability are never made to feel that their lives have become burdensome or that death is the only answer to their suffering.
As Belgium continues to report rising euthanasia numbers more than two decades after legalization, the latest findings invite renewed reflection on the responsibilities of governments, healthcare professionals, families, and communities to protect human life.
At the heart of the Catholic response remains an unwavering conviction that human dignity does not diminish with illness, suffering, or age, and that every person deserves compassionate care and accompaniment until natural death.
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