Legality of euthanasia Legality of euthanasia Efforts to change government policies on euthanasia of humans in the 20th and 21st centuries have met limited success in Western countries. Human euthanasia policies have also been developed by a variety of NGOs, most notably medical associations and advocacy organizations. , active human euthanasia is legal in the Netherlands, Belgium, Colombia, Luxembourg, and Canada. Assisted suicide is legal in Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, and in the US states of Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Hawaii, Vermont, Montana, Washington DC, and California. A law legalising euthanasia in the Australian state of Victoria will come into effect in mid-2019. On
Euthanasia in the United States Euthanasia in the United States Euthanasia is illegal in most of the United States. Assisted suicide/assisted death is legal in Washington DC and the states of California, Colorado, Oregon, Vermont, Hawaii, and Washington; its status is disputed in Montana. The key difference between euthanasia and assisted suicide is that in cases of assisted suicide, the individual receives assistance, but ultimately voluntarily causes their own death. In euthanasia the individual does not directly end their life, but another person acts to cause the individual's death. Debates about the ethics of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide date from ancient Greece and Rome. After