Background on Euthanasia in Spain
Since the enactment of the law regulating euthanasia in June 2021, Spain has witnessed a significant increase in requests for this practice. The Ministry of Health recently reported that, in 2024 alone, 929 euthanasia request processes concluded, with 426 resulting in actual euthanasia cases. This represents a 27.5% increase from the previous year and accounts for 45.86% of all requests.
Request Trends Over Time
- 173 requests in 2021
- 576 requests in 2022
- 766 requests in 2023
- 929 requests in 2024 (a 437% total increase)
Regional Distribution of Requests
Catalonia saw the highest number of requests (303, with 142 being granted), followed by Madrid (129, with 62 being granted), the Basque Country (75, with 50 being granted), Andalusia (72, with 30 being granted), Canary Islands (52, with 25 being granted), Balearic Islands (48, with 17 being granted), Castile and Leon (40, with 15 being granted), Asturias (34, with six being granted).
- Galicia: 34 requests, 16 granted
- Valencian Community: 31 requests, 16 granted
- Castilla-La Mancha: 26 requests, eight granted
- Navarra: 23 requests, 14 granted
- Aragon: 22 requests, eight granted
- Cantabria: 13 requests, three granted
- La Rioja: nine requests, six granted
- Murcia: nine requests, four granted
- Extremadura: eight requests, four granted
- Ceuta: zero requests
Demographics of Requestors
Over the past two years, 75.89% of requestors have been individuals aged 60 or older. Specifically, 202 were between 60 and 69 years old; 245, between 70 and 79; and 258, over 80. Meanwhile, 131 requests were from individuals aged 50 to 59; 56, between 40 and 49; 27, between 30 and 39; and 10 were from those under 30.
Common Underlying Conditions
Neurological conditions (32.51%) and oncological conditions (29.71%) were the most common underlying issues, accounting for 62.22% of all cases. Out of the 929 concluded processes in 2024, 534 involved individuals with decision-making capacity, while 51 were cases where individuals had completed advance directives when they still possessed the capacity to do so.
Key Questions and Answers
- What is the total number of euthanasia requests in Spain from 2021 to 2024? There have been a total of 2,432 requests during this period.
- How many of these requests resulted in successful euthanasia cases in 2024? There were 426 successful euthanasia cases in Spain in 2024.
- Which regions had the highest number of euthanasia requests in 2024? Catalonia had the most requests (303), followed by Madrid (129).
- What were the most common underlying conditions among those requesting euthanasia? Neurological conditions (32.51%) and oncological conditions (29.71%) were the most prevalent.
- What percentage of requestors were over 60 years old? 75.89% of requestors were aged 60 or older.
