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Murcia rejects first three euthanasia requests involving patients with mental illness
Only 16 of the 27 euthanasia requests made in the Region of Murcia since 2021 have been approved
The first three euthanasia requests in the Region of Murcia involving patients with underlying mental health conditions have all been rejected, according to the body responsible for overseeing the process.
The applications were submitted in 2025 and were assessed under Spain’s euthanasia law, which came into force in 2021. Although having a mental illness doesn’t automatically prevent someone from requesting euthanasia, these cases require particularly careful assessment.
José Manuel Allegue, president of Murcia’s Regional Guarantees Commission, explained that “the law does not establish a general criterion for psychiatric illnesses”. Instead, each case has to be examined to determine whether the person meets the legal requirements for euthanasia.
In all three Murcia cases, the attending doctors concluded that all available measures, including treatments, had not yet been exhausted in an attempt to relieve the patients’ suffering. The requests were therefore rejected.
One of the patients appealed the decision to the full Regional Guarantees Commission, which ultimately upheld the rejection.
Spain’s euthanasia law requires a person to have either a serious and incurable condition causing unbearable suffering with no acceptable relief or a serious, chronic and disabling condition where the limitations are expected to continue without any realistic prospect of improvement.
The process also includes safeguards designed to establish whether the patient understands their decision and has the capacity to make it. Abel Novoa, president of the Association for the Defence of Public Healthcare, said “extreme safeguards” should be used when assessing requests involving psychiatric illness.
The three cases form part of a total of 27 euthanasia requests submitted in Murcia since 2021. Of these, 16 received a favourable report while nine were rejected. Two others did not result in a report because one patient died and another withdrew their request.
Cases involving mental illness have been considered in other parts of Spain too. In Catalonia, 33 such requests had been submitted by the end of 2024, although only five were approved.
One of the best-known cases was Noelia Castillo, who received approval in Catalonia and died at the end of March after a lengthy legal battle. Although she had an adjustment disorder with anxiety and depression, her case also involved paraplegia, which was considered an irreversible condition causing severe dependency and chronic suffering.
The Murcia figures also show that the Region has a much lower rate of completed euthanasia procedures than many other parts of Spain. In 2024, Murcia recorded 0.57 procedures per 100,000 residents, compared with a national average of 1.91.
In 2025, eight requests were submitted in Murcia, six by women and two by men. Three received favourable decisions, although only two procedures ultimately went ahead.
Image: Freepik
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