Overview

The Netherlands was the first country in the world to liberalize euthanasia. The 2002 “Termination of Life on Request and Assisted Suicide (Review Procedures) Act states that euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide are not punishable if the attending physician acts in accordance with criteria of due care. These criteria are met if the patient is affected with an incurable condition, unbearable suffering and is in full possession of mental faculties. Each case has to have a second medical opinion before euthanasia is carried out in a medically appropriate way. After the event, it is referred to a regional review committee including a doctor, a legal expert and a medical ethicist. Children and teenagers aged 12 to 16 can request euthanasia, but they must have parental consent for it to be carried out. According to recent data, more than 7700 people chose assisted suicide in 2016, which translates into .5% of the overall deaths. With regard to assisted reproduction, the Netherlands adopted a liberal regulatory approach and is the most generous European country when it comes to partial or total reimbursement of ART patients. However, reimbursements are denied to women over the age of 41 thus women aged 40 or more are reported to travel to neighboring Belgium to seek treatment. The law prohibits reproductive cloning and the creation of embryos for purposes other than reproduction the creation of embryos specifically for scientific research or for purposes other than the generation of a pregnancy; performing procedures with gametes or embryos with the goal of the birth of genetically identical human individuals and the creation of hybrids and chimeras are also forbidden. Research on (supernumerary) embryos is permitted if reasonably likely to lead to the identification of new insights in the field of fertility, in the field of artificial reproduction techniques, in the field of congenital diseases or in the field of transplant medicine. In 2017, the Dutch Health Council has recommended that scientists be allowed to create embryos specifically for research purposes. Emergency contraceptives are sold without prescriptions in pharmacies, hospitals, and family clinics. Emergency contraceptives and regular contraceptives are not (fully or in part) subsidized when sold with a prescription. Abortion in the Netherlands was fully legalized on November 1, 1984, allowing abortions to be done on-demand until the twenty-first week. Cases which involve urgent medical attention can be aborted until the twenty-fourth week. There is a five-day waiting period for abortions.
Aabortion

Abortion

93 pts out of 100 / 100,00% complete

93 pts

Abortion and contraception allow women to express their freedom of reproduction by exercising their right of self-determination over their bodies.


Measurement questions

Is abortion lawful to protect woman's life?

Yes

Is abortion lawful to protect woman's physical health?

Yes

Is abortion lawful to protect woman's mental health?

Yes

Is abortion lawful in the event the woman was raped?

Yes

Is abortion lawful in the event of fetal defects?

Yes

Does the law mandate that an abortion is performed at the mere request of a pregnant woman?

Yes

Is RU-486 (Mifepristone) approved or registered for use?

Yes and it is available with prescription

Are emergency contraception drugs lawfully available?

Yes, over the counter

Are family planning services provided through government-run programs and facilities?

Yes, indirectly

Is spousal notification/permission required?

No

Assisted reproduction

Assisted Reproduction

87 pts out of 100 / 100,00% complete

87 pts

Assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) are the methods used to achieve pregnancy by artificial or partially artificial means. Access to assisted reproduction concerns our ability to expand our right to health by offering us access to treatment to overcome infertility.


Measurement questions

Is preimplantation genetic diagnosis permissible?

Yes with no restrictions

Is oocyte cryopreservation permissible?

Not prohibited but used

Is embryo cryopreservation permissible for reproductive purposes?

Yes

Is sperm donation permissible?

Yes

Is oocyte donation permissible?

Yes

Are IVF surrogacy agreements enforceable?

Yes, commercial and not

Marital status requirements?

No

Do same-sex couples have access to ART?

Yes

Do single women have access to ART?

No

Are there any limits on the number of pre-embryos that can be transferred?

No

End Off Life

End of life

100 pts out of 100 / 100,00% complete

100 pts

End of life decisions concern our ability to make choices concerning the end of our lives and take of the form of refusal of life sustaining treatment, being help in committing suicide, choosing euthanasia, and make choices that must be upheld even when the person becomes unconscious. As Young (2010) noted, "People have an interest in making important decisions about their lives in accordance with their own conception of how they want their lives to go."


Measurement questions

Is passive euthanasia lawful?

Yes

Is active euthanasia lawful?

Yes

Is physician-assisted suicide lawful?

Yes

Are advance directives (AD) enforceable?

Yes

Is a physician required to respect a patient's refusal of life-sustaining treatment?

Yes

Research With Embryo

Research with embryos

38 pts out of 100 / 100,00% complete

38 pts

Research with embryos and pre-embryos as well as therapeutic cloning concerns scientists’ freedom to investigate human biology as well as patients’ freedom to access regenerative medicine treatments that may be developed as a result of research with human embryonic stem cells. Since the early 2000s, research with embryos has been at the center of an often-polarized debate about the nature and scope of scientific freedom.


Measurement questions

Is basic research using germline modification in human embryos/gametes permitted?

Only permitted on supernumerary embryos

Is pre-clinical research using germline modification technologies in animals permitted?

Yes

Is clinical research using germline modification technologies in humans permitted?

No

Are clinical applications of research using germline modification technologies (i.e., to initiate a pregnancy with edited embryos or with edited gametes) permitted?

No

GM Crops

GM Crops

60 pts out of 100 / 100,00% complete

60 pts

GM crops have contributed significantly to modern agriculture. Plant breeding using genetic modification techniques has led to improving crops in more targeted ways than classical breeding techniques. GM crops acquire desirable characteristics, including pest and herbicide resistance, enhanced robustness against diseases, drought or water tolerance, and healthier profiles that can enhance nutrition.


Measurement questions

Is research on GMOs permitted in the laboratories?

Yes

Is notification to start research on GMOs in laboratories required?

Yes

Is research on GMOs frequent?

Yes

Are GM crop field trials (the limited release into the environment for research purposes) permitted?

Yes

Is authorization to start a GM crop field trial required?

Yes/prohibited

Are GM crop field trials frequent?

Yes

Is cultivation of GM crops (for commercial purposes) in open field permitted?

No

Is authorization to start open field cultivation of GM crops required?

Yes/prohibited

Is open field cultivation of GM crops frequent?

No/prohibited

Can GM crop commodities harvested in other countries be imported?

Yes

Is authorization to import GM crop commodities required?

Yes/prohibited

Is the import of GM crop commoties frequent?

Yes

Right To Science Indicators

Right To Science Indicators


Measurement questions

- Access to benefits

What is the total general government expenditure on education?

11.98

What is the expenditure on tertiary as % of government expenditure on education?

30.57

What is the the percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed a doctoral degree or equivalent?

0.57

What is the percentage of population that uses the Internet?

90.41

What is the quality of math and science education on a scale from 1 to 7 being "excellent"?

5.7

To what extent is the Internet used in schools for learning purposes?

6

What is the scientific literacy of 15-year-old students as measured by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)(mean score)?

509

- Opportunities to participate

Does the law mandate nondiscrimination based on gender in hiring?

Yes

What is the percentage of females employed with advanced degrees out of total employed?

55.3

- Enabling environment

How many scientific and technical journal articles are published each year in physics, biology, chemistry, mathematics, clinical medicine, biomedical research, engineering and technology, and earth and space sciences?

29949

What is the percentage of GDP allocated to Research and Development?

2.01

How may published articles have received at least H citations in the period 1996–2014?

67.6

What is the quality of scientific research institutions?

6.1

To what extent do business and universities collaborate on research and development (R&D)?

5.6

What is the average university ranking score of countries based on their top 3 universities?

69.7

To what extent are scientists and engineers available?

4.9

How many professionals are employed as researchers?

9.2

How many professionals are employed by government as researchers?

11.1

- International cooperation

To what extent are talented people attracted from abroad?

5.1

Recent News about Netherlands

Euthanasia rates rise by 10% in the Netherlands

Deaths by euthanasia increased 10% in the Netherlands in 2016, according to a new report published by the country’s Regional Euthanasia Review Committees (RTE). The report states that in 2016, 6091 patients were euthanised, up from 5516 in 2015. Most of the cases of euthanasia involved people with cancer, serious heart or lung problems or

Dutch will probably legalise assisted dying for people tired of living

The Dutch government plans to create a new end-of-life law for elderly people who are tired of living. Health Minister Edith Schippers told Parliament that a new kind of assisted suicide is needed for people who are not terminally ill or suffering, but who want to die (link to letter to Parliament, in Dutch). She

Dutch Court Clears Man Who Helped His 99-Year-Old Mother Die

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — A Dutch appeals court on Wednesday cleared a man of any criminal responsibility for helping his 99-year-old mother take her own life — a case that aimed to create precedents for assisting suicide in a country where euthanasia already is legal under certain circumstances. Judges in the city of Arnhem said