The President of the HVD, Dr. Horst Groschopp, comments on the first reading:
“We welcome both the draft bill and the fact that parliament is finally beginning its deliberations. The opponents of the proposed bill have still not been able to submit an alternative motion – although the topic has been discussed since the beginning of the legislative period. The reservations mentioned, especially the ‘range limitation’, were and are vague, ideologically or politically motivated and medically impractical. In any case, they are directed against the will of the majority of the population.
The Humanist Association Germany (HVD) has been offering advice and implementation practice on living wills since 1993. Based on our 15 years of experience, we are convinced that the present draft bill provides the framework for responsible healthcare practice.
Our day-to-day work is characterized both by patient autonomy in dialogue and by an ethic of care. We are concerned with the implementation of prevention tools in the sense of high-quality treatment planning. Outpatient and inpatient facilities, the medical profession, hospice and palliative care providers are called upon to form reliable networks in order to respect the patient’s wishes.
The ‘new’ demand for ‘upgrading the status of authorized representatives’, which the churches and some Greens are now presenting, has long since been incorporated into the draft law. The fact that his critics nevertheless continue to unsettle the public, doctors, caregivers and nurses with their dysfunctions shows once again how important the legal clarification is.”
