Euthanasia Numbers Soar Despite Tiny Workforce
Family First has analysed the Registrar (assisted dying) Annual Report – June 2025
Key findings include:
472 people had assisted suicide – up from 344 in the previous 12 months – a 37% increase in assisted deaths in the last 12 months, and a 57% increase since the first full year of operation (2022).
20% increase in applications
80% NZ European/Pākehā. Virtually no Pasifika (<0.5%) and disproportionately few Māori (5%)
12% of applicants had a disability
242 applicants died before 'needing' euthanasia
the application process continues to shorten, now averaging only 14 days – down from 16 days in the previous report
less than 10% of applicants are for neurological conditions (the conditions frequently touted by proponents as the reason for needing euthanasia)
85% of applicants are deemed eligible by the attending medical practitioner
95% of second assessments (of those 85%) by an independent medical practitioner are deemed eligible
On the positive side, the report says:
'There have been occasions on which a person's request for assisted dying has led to them exploring alternative care or services, such as optimising palliative care or additional social or wrap-around supports. In some cases, this resulted in the person rescinding (withdrawing) their application for assisted dying.'
The report says that 33 people subsequently decided to withdraw their application.
The report also highlights the very low number of medical professionals willing to be involved in euthanasia / assisted suicide – approximately 126 – despite attempts by the SCENZ to bolster the workforce. This is not surprising given the Hippocratic Oath / Declaration of Geneva made by medical professionals. Assisting suicide clashes with this ethical base.
What is most disturbing is that more than one in five applicants (21%) weren't receiving palliative care. The End of Life Choice Act only provides a 'right' to one choice – premature death. There is no corresponding right to palliative care. Good palliative care and hospice services are resource intensive; euthanasia would be cheaper. There is a new element of 'financial calculation' into decisions about end-of-life care. This is harsh reality. At an individual level, the economically disadvantaged who don't have access to better healthcare could feel pressured to end their lives because of the cost factor or because other better choices are not available to them. Some hospitals have no specialist palliative care services at all.
Of those deemed ineligible for euthanasia, 85% was because they didn't meet the 6-month criteria, and approximately 40% also didn't meet either the 'unbearable suffering' or the 'irreversible physical decline' requirement.
The other significant red flag in the report is that just 10 applicants had a psychiatric assessment to check for both competence to make the decision, and for any presence of coercion.
This latest data simply confirms that nothing in the law guarantees the protection required for vulnerable people facing their death, including the disabled, elderly, depressed or anxious, and those who feel themselves to be a burden or who are under financial pressure.
The NZ Herald recently reported: ' A specialist paediatric palliative care (PPC) doctor says New Zealand is falling behind other nations in its care of terminally ill children and the Government must step up to help.' And the demand for this specialist medical care will only increase significantly in the near future. Our population is ageing, and therefore the number of people requiring palliative care is forecast to increase by approximately 25% over the next 15 years and will be more than double that by 2061.
Previous Governments have made little effort to address this growing problem and to increase funding for this essential service. Euthanasia is instead given priority and full Government funding.
It's time we focused on and fully funded world-class palliative care – and not a lethal injection.
We can live without euthanasia.
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