Claim:
A severely disabled two-year-old child was euthanized in the Netherlands under the country’s expanded euthanasia laws.
<div class="rating_wrapper">
<span class="wrapper_title">Rating:</span>
<a id="main_rating" class="rating_link_wrapper" href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/rating/true">
<div class="rating_img_wrap">
<img class="lazy-image" src="https://mediaproxy.snopes.com/width/200/https://media.snopes.com/2018/03/rating-true.png" alt="True"/>
</div>
</a>
</div>
<div id="outer_fact_context" class="outer_fact_check_context">
<div class="fact_check_info_wrapper">
<span class="fact_check_info_title">Context</span>
<p class="fact_check_info_description">A medical review panel concluded that the attending physician "acted with due care." The Netherlands Public Prosecution Service is responsible for determining whether the actions complied with all legal boundaries.</p>
</div>
</div>
</section>
<input type="hidden" id="article_url" value="/fact-check/toddler-euthanized-netherlands/"/>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Discussions spread across the internet in September 2026 regarding reports that medical professionals had euthanized a young child in the Netherlands.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Users across </span><a href="https://perma.cc/FC87-HUKL"><span>social media platforms</span></a><span> and </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2ChFgNMsAg"><span>YouTube</span></a><span> asserted that the nation had recently permitted the termination of life for a severely disabled two-year-old. On X, one individual </span><a href="https://perma.cc/P7DG-7X98"><span>wrote</span></a><span>, "My heart hurts for the broken world in which we live that has so abandoned its humanity."</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Due to the sensitive nature of the topic and ongoing global discussions surrounding </span><a href="https://apnews.com/hub/reproductive-rights"><span>end-of-life and medical ethics</span></a><span>, numerous readers contacted us via email requesting an investigation into the matter.</span></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter_tweet_display_box">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Euthanasie of a 2years old baby in the Netherlands: disabled now can be killed and they say it's human not to tet live disabled and kill them without even give thm the possibility to make an own informed decision when they are an adult.: WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE TO THE NAZIS?!! <a href="https://t.co/Wp2eiNlW1g">https://t.co/Wp2eiNlW1g</a></p>
<p>— KaiTraudvetter (@traudvette8137) <a href="https://x.com/traudvette8137/status/2100932731915972677?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 18, 2026</a></p>
</blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><span>The core assertion is accurate.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>An official </span><a href="https://www.lzalpkcommissie.nl/over-ons"><span>evaluation committee</span></a><span>—comprising four medical doctors, a legal expert, and an ethicist, established jointly by the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport and the Ministry of Justice and Security—outlined its responsibilities in its </span><a href="https://open.overheid.nl/overheid/openbaarmakingen/api/v0/attachment/f89af6de-7b10-4496-b1a6-27073f205153"><span>2025 annual report</span></a><span> (translated from Dutch via DeepL):</span></p>
<blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><span>The committee assesses whether a physician acted with due care in cases of late-term abortion or the termination of life in a newborn or a child between the ages of 1 and 12. In 2025, the Commission received three reports of late pregnancy terminations. No reports of end-of-life care for newborns were received in 2025. At the end of 2025, the Commission received its first report of end-of-life care for a child between the ages of 1 and 12. The committee meets every two months and will address this report at its first meeting of 2026.</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><span>The panel's official evaluation regarding this specific case—which is publicly accessible </span><a href="https://www.lzalpkcommissie.nl/publicaties/oordelen/lk/2026/lk-2026-001"><span>on their website</span></a><span>—concluded that the physician involved "acted with due care."</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>As defined by </span><a href="https://www.lzalpkcommissie.nl/publicaties/oordelen"><span>the committee</span></a><span>, "due care" requires that a doctor must "arrive at the conviction, on the basis of prevailing medical insight, that euthanasia is the only reasonable solution to alleviate the child's hopeless and unbearable suffering."</span></p>
<h2><span>Legal Framework in the Netherlands</span></h2>
<p dir="ltr"><span>According to </span><a href="https://www.government.nl/themes/family-health-and-care/euthanasia/is-euthanasia-allowed"><span>Dutch authorities</span></a><span>, "euthanasia (termination of life on request) and assisted suicide are criminal offences" unless "the procedure is performed by a physician who has satisfied six statutory due care criteria."</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>These statutory requirements mandate that the physician must:</span></p>
<blockquote>
<ol>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"><span>Be satisfied that the patient's request is voluntary and well considered.</span></li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"><span>Be satisfied that the patient's suffering is unbearable, with no prospect of improvement.</span></li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"><span>Have informed the patient about their situation and prognosis.</span></li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"><span>Have concluded, alongside the patient, that no reasonable alternatives exist for their situation.</span></li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"><span>Have consulted at least one independent physician, who must examine the patient and provide a written assessment regarding criteria 1 through 4.</span></li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"><span>Have exercised appropriate medical care and professionalism during the procedure.</span></li>
</ol>
</blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><span>In October 2024, the </span><a href="https://www.nvk.nl/kennisdocument/levensbeeindiging-bij-kinderen-1-12-jaar-zorgvuldigheidseisen/"><span>legislation surrounding euthanasia was broadened</span></a><span> to encompass minors between the ages of 1 and 12. This particular instance marks the first implementation of the expanded framework.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Guidelines provided by the government regarding </span><a href="https://www.government.nl/themes/family-health-and-care/euthanasia/termination-of-life-for-terminally-ill-children-aged-1-to-12"><span>end-of-life care for children aged 1 to 12</span></a><span> specify:</span></p>
<blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Termination of life is only allowed if a child is terminally ill and is suffering unbearably with no prospect of improvement. This means the child is in constant, severe pain. And that there is no cure, and no reasonable alternative to relieve the child's suffering, even through palliative care.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>In this situation, the doctor may decide, together with the parents, to terminate the child's life. This decision is always made in consultation with the parents and, if possible, also with the child.</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Following the committee’s determination that the medical professional adhered to the required guidelines, the case details and review findings are forwarded to the </span><a href="https://www.prosecutionservice.nl/"><span>Public Prosecution Service</span></a><span> to establish whether the actions taken were fully compliant with the law.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>We contacted the office of Health, Welfare, and Sport Minister Sophie Hermans—who initially </span><a href="https://www.lbc.co.uk/article/child-under-twelve-euthanised-netherlands-5Hjdc52_2/"><span>informed the Dutch Parliament</span></a><span> of the case in June 2026—to inquire about its current legal standing and will provide updates if new information becomes available.</span></p>
<h2><span>Case Specifics</span></h2>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Documentation from the </span><a href="https://www.lzalpkcommissie.nl/publicaties/oordelen/lk/2026/lk-2026-001"><span>review committee</span></a><span> indicates that the child was born prematurely at 26 weeks gestation, which led to the development of sepsis.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>In the months that followed, the toddler experienced extensive brain damage, cerebral visual impairment, severe epilepsy, and a complete lack of verbal and cerebral development.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>The report noted that "the child had multiple, very severe disabilities, both mental and physical, and the prognosis was that the child would be dependent on support with all activities of daily living for the rest of their life."</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Because the young patient was unable to communicate, the official record states that "the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment options were discussed extensively with the parents," who ultimately requested that the physician end their child's life.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>While other consulting doctors suggested palliative care as an alternative, "the parents were of the opinion that the proposed treatments would only prolong the child's suffering."</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Ultimately, the medical procedure began "by administering increasing doses of midazolam and morphine through an IV cannula," followed by "coma-inducing substances (propofol and thiopental), after which the child reached a state of very deep sedation, and died."</span></p>