Switzerland is recording a considerable rise in assisted suicides: 965 individuals “took a lethal substance” in 2015 compared to 742 in 2014 and 86 in 2000. These figures only take into consideration those “individuals living” in the country – they do not include foreigners who travel to Switzerland “to die“.
The average age of people who resort to assisted suicide is 77.5 years with the elderly population representing the majority of “clients” of the Exit organisation[1]. In 2015, 822 of the 965 individuals were over the age of 65. This phenomenon is constantly increasing since “the current senior generation has grown old with Exit”.
[1] “Founded in 1982″, Exit is an association that carries out assisted suicide in Switzerland. “Its membership has doubled over the last decade to reach 105,000 at the end of 2016“.
20 minutes Suisse, Christine Talos (15/11/2017)