Colombia legalized euthanasia for people with terminal illnesses in 1997. In 2021, the Colombian court recognized that the procedure should not be only available to those with terminal illnesses and, on Jan. 7, 2022, Victor Escobar, who had a degenerative disorder (end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), was the first person with a non-terminal illness to die via legally regulated euthanasia in Colombia.
The next day, Martha Sepulveda, who suffered with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, was the second person with a non-terminal illness to die via legally regulated euthanasia in Colombia.
DescLAB, a legal rights advocacy group, stated 178 people with terminal illnesses had been legally euthanized between 1997 and Oct. 15, 2020 in Colombia.