State kills 472 vulnerable patients in 2024!

Media Release 21 May 2025

In response to an Official Information Act request from Right to Life dated 5th May, Health New Zealand (Te Whatu Ora) advised that a total of 472 vulnerable patients in New Zealand had been given a lethal injection or assisted in suicide in the year ending 31 March 2025.

This was an increase of 37% from the 344 patients killed in the year ending 2023. On average, this is 9 patients being killed each week in New Zealand.

Health NZ advised that since the introduction of the End of Life Choice Act on 7th November 2021, and up to 31 March 2025, a total of 1213 vulnerable patients have been killed, 898 in their home, 84 in a hospital, 195 in a retirement home and 36 in a hospice.

The community should be concerned that an insidious culture of death is increasingly threatening the most vulnerable patients in our community.

Most hospices are now allowing their patients to be assessed for euthanasia. There is only one hospice that has succumbed to allowing their eligible patients to be killed by their doctor. Right to Life commends the administrations of the other 31 hospices who are committed to caring for their patients with love and quality palliative care.

The government generously pays doctors to end the lives of eligible vulnerable patients. Right to Life commends those doctors who are faithful to the ethics of their profession and who refuse to participate in the killing of their patients , they are deserving of the support and trust of the community.

The Hon. David Seymour, leader of the ACT party, a member of the coalition government, is responsible as the architect for the End of Life Choice Act for the perfidious evil that has been inflicted on our nation.

David Seymour now seeks to have the legislation amended to allow more vulnerable patients to be eligible to receive a lethal injection or assisted in suicide. ACT Member of Parliament Todd Stephenson, has a private members bill in the ballot, which seeks to remove the six-month requirement of expected death of the patient. ACT also supports the killing of dementia patients with advanced directives, and the removal of the “gag clause” that prevents doctors from first raising the issue of euthanasia with their patients.

The government funds and promotes the killing of eligible patients as a health service that allows patients to die with “dignity”.

Right to Life is totally opposed to the killing of the vulnerable and supports increased government funding for hospices which are in financial crisis to allow those in need to receive compassionate and loving palliative care. Right to Life believes that there is no dignity in being killed by your doctor. Why would you trust your doctor if he believes that killing you is a treatment option?

Right to Life will not rest until the End of Life Choice Act is repealed. Our society has presented a petition to Parliament seeking the repeal of the End of Life Choice Act. It was sent to the Parliamentary Petitions select committee this week for their consideration. We will be making a substantial written submission in support of the petition.

Ken Orr,

Spokesperson,

Right to Life New Zealand Inc.