Writer first to die under Italy fast-track assisted suicide law

ROME: A writer suffering from Parkinson´s disease has become the first to die through medically assisted suicide under a fast-track regional law in Italy, campaigners said on Wednesday.

Daniele Pieroni died at home on May 17, three months after the new legislation was passed by regional authorities in Tuscany, the pro-euthanasia Luca Coscioni Association said. The Italian Constitutional Court ruled in September 2019 that assisted suicide was allowed for patients in certain circumstances. But the national parliament has yet to adopt any legislation, which means that obtaining permission to die is difficult and can take years. In February, Tuscany -- ruled by the centre left -- became the first of Italy´s 20 regions to set out its own rules streamlining and speeding up the request process.