Physician-assisted Suicide in Albania: Is It Constitutionally Protected?

In Albania, end-of-life decisions are a "hot" bioethical topic since the legal framework is unclear. While physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia are considered criminal offences, the Albanian Parliament has allowed the withholding of or withdrawing medical treatment by conscious patients without establishing precise rules regarding advance directives. This article focuses on physician-assisted suicide in Albania. While other Western European countries have allowed assisted suicide by physicians through legal rules or constitutional interpretation, physician-assisted suicide remains a criminal offence in Albania punishable under the Albanian Code of Medical Ethics. After uncovering the constitutional approach to physician-assisted suicide in Italy, Germany, and Austria, this article answers the following research question: "If the Albanian Constitutional Court were called upon to discuss the constitutionality of physician-assisted suicide, what would be its response?" This article also examines the advantages and disadvantages of allowing physician-assisted suicide by referring to the role of national Constitutional Courts of other Western European countries.