The end-of-life bill, supported in France by MPs Alain Claeys (PS) and Jean Leonetti (LR), will be given a final vote soon, after 3 years of political debate. A joint Committee (CMP) composed of seven MPs and seven senators managed to unanimously agree on a common text on Tuesday, 19 January. Now the bill will be voted on again first by MPs, on 25 January, and then by senators on 17 February. Alain Claeys said he was “optimistic” about this final revision of the text. The agreed text is very similar to the version approved by the Assembly. In Article 2, for instance, – as reported by Le Monde – senators opted to define artificial hydration as a “treatment” which could be maintained even when patients were given continuous deep sedation until their death. The text agreed yesterday by the Committee also reaffirms that artificial hydration and feeding are “treatments”, and as such, they may be stopped if the patient receives futile medical care. Another point of disagreement between the Assembly and the Senate is Article 3 of the bill. In the end, Alain Claeys and Jean Leonetti agreed on cancelling the formula: “Not to extend life unnecessarily”, which many MPs found ambiguous. As for the living will, doctors may ignore it “for reasons of vital urgency, for the time needed to make a comprehensive assessment of the situation”, and when the will “is inappropriate or unsuitable for the medical condition”. A video featuring journalist Marine Lamoureux briefly explaining the bill that is expected to be voted on by the Assembly by the end of the month, and by the Senate in February, has been published today on the new website of the daily La Croix.