The first terminally ill child to be euthanized in the Netherlands under a controversial expansion of its assisted-dying laws was just a 1-year-old baby.
Dutch government officials first revealed in June that a child died by euthanasia last year, just saying it was the first assisted death of someone under 12 but without giving more detail, including the gender or ailment the tragic kid was dying from.
Now, a government report published has revealed the child was born abroad prematurely at 26 weeks, battled sepsis, and was diagnosed with “very extensive brain damage” at four-and-a-half months.
The child was diagnosed with severe cerebral palsy before being diagnosed with infantile epileptic spasms syndrome — a very severe form of epilepsy — when just eight months old.
The epilepsy led to a “severe sleeping disorder,” and caused “coughing fits and the child had a swallowing disorder,” the report said.
“In the months prior to the child’s death, the seizures increased significantly when the child was eating,” the report, published by the Assessment Committee for Late Termination of Pregnancy and Termination of Life in Newborns and Children Aged 1 to 12 Years, said. “The extensive brain damage severely affected the child’s functioning.
“The child had very severe developmental delay; at the age of almost two years, the child’s developmental age was estimated to be that of a six-week-old baby.
“The child had multiple, very severe disabilities, both mental and physical, and the prognosis was that the child would be dependent on support with all activities of daily living for the rest of their life.”
The baby was at “considerably higher risk” of developing breathing infections and physicians ruled “there was deemed to be a very high probability of the child dying at a very young age due to complications.”
The Dutch government legalized euthanasia for severely ill children between the ages of 1 and 12 in 2024.
“Euthanasia is only allowed for patients whose unbearable suffering with no prospect of improvement has a medical dimension,” the government says.
The report found the physician acted lawfully throughout the process.
Doctors concluded there was a “realistic expectation… the child’s situation would deteriorate further.”
Doctors must consult a six-point checklist before deciding whether to end a patient’s life under the Termination of Life on Request and Assisted Suicide (Review Procedures) Act.
They must rule that the patient is not under duress and decide whether their “suffering is unbearable with no prospect of improvement,” according to the government.
Doctors were “convinced that there was no reasonable way to reduce or end the child’s suffering other than by termination of the child’s life.”
The physician fully informed the child’s parents about the process, obtained their consent, consulted with at least one independent doctor, and exercised due care, therefore acting lawfully.
Doctors who perform euthanasia unlawfully risk up to 12 years in prison, and could also face a fine.
In 2002, the Netherlands was the first country in the world to legalise euthanasia under strict conditions. All cases of euthanasia must be reported to medical review boards.
Last year, 10,341 deaths by assisted suicide or euthanasia were reported in the Netherlands, according to the Regional Euthanasia Review Committees. This was a 3.8% rise compared to 2024.
The Netherlands isn’t the first country to allow doctor-assisted death for children of all ages. Belgium has allowed it since 2014.
Canada legalized the assisted suicide practice, medical assistance in dying, in 2016 and stats reveal that assisted suicide makes up more than one in 10 deaths in parts of the country.
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