The recommendations came after MPs passed the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on Friday, with the bill now progressing through the House of Lords.
The British Medical Association (BMA) has urged parliament to ensure that any funding for a new assisted suicide service is matched with more money for palliative care, mental health, and social care services.
The BMA, a trade union and professional association for doctors, passed a motion during its annual representatives meeting in Liverpool on Monday stating that assisted suicide should “never be seen as a cheaper alternative to high-quality, state-funded public services”.
Palliative care, in particular, was described by doctors as being “wrongfully under-resourced,” with patients often facing a postcode lottery when trying to access end-of-life care.
Palliative medicine registrar Dr. Sarah Foot, who supported the motion, said, “Hospices and palliative care does not have enough funding. We cannot live in a society were we fully fund assisted dying, but we don’t fully fund hospice and palliative care.”
The BMA adopted a neutral on assisted suicide in 2021 but has engaged with the legislative process to ensure that doctors are represented in key issues.
Dr Andrew Green, chairman of the BMA’s medical ethics committee, said the association has been clear that any future assisted suicide provision should be offered through a separate service that doctors must opt in to, and not be part of any doctor’s regular work.
“This service must come with additional funding, alongside further investment in palliative care, which we know has for too long been under-resourced, leading to huge variations in availability across the country,” Green said.
The recommendations came after MPs passed the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on Friday. The bill had its first reading in the House of Lords on Monday.
Discussing All Options With Patients
The motion at the BMA also proposed a number of changes to the bill, including that a terminally ill person should have a face-to-face meeting with a specialist end-of-life doctor to ensure they are fully aware of the options available to them, and to give doctors more opportunities to spot signs of coercion.
