Regional council backs citizens’ bill in memory of journalist Laura Santi, as regions act to fill the gap left by parliament.Umbria has become the fifth Italian region to pass a law regulating access to medically assisted suicide, joining Tuscany, Sardinia, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto.The regional council in Perugia approved the bill on Thursday with 11 votes in favour, six against and three abstentions, according to news agency ANSA. The centre-left majority backed the text, which was drawn up by the Luca Coscioni Association and supported by 4,801 signatures.It was dedicated to Laura Santi, a Perugia journalist with multiple sclerosis who died by assisted suicide at home on 21 July 2025, after a three-year legal battle. Her widower, Stefano Massoli, attended the debate. Why regions are acting Assisted suicide has been legal in Italy under strict conditions since a 2019 constitutional court ruling. Patients must have an irreversible condition causing intolerable suffering, depend on life-sustaining treatment and be able to make a free, informed decision.Parliament has never passed national legislation setting out procedures, despite repeated calls from the court. Campaigners say this has caused bureaucratic delays and prolonged suffering, and regions have stepped in using their powers over healthcare.Under the Umbrian law, each local health authority must set up a permanent multidisciplinary commission to verify that patients meet the requirements. The commission includes a palliative care doctor, psychiatrist, anaesthetist, psychologist, forensic doctor and nurse. Political reaction Regional president Stefania Proietti, a centre-left independent close to Catholic circles, did not vote. She said the issue should be handled by parliament to ensure uniformity, and has stressed the need to expand palliative care. The right-wing Fratelli d’Italia voted against, while the centre-right Forza Italia abstained and members of the right-wing Lega were divided.Regional vice-president Tommaso Bori, of the centre-left Partito Democratico (PD), called the vote “a conquest of civilisation, freedom and dignity”. Opponents in the chamber argued that health services should provide care rather than accompany patients to death. Marco Cappato, treasurer of the right-to-die association Associazione Luca Coscioni, accused the government and parliament of being “completely immobile”. The Meloni government argues that assisted suicide is a matter for the state, not the regions. It has challenged the Tuscan and Sardinian laws before the Constitutional Court and has said it will do the same with the legislation approved by Emilia-Romagna. The court partly upheld the Tuscan challenge in 2025 but confirmed that regions may regulate organisational aspects. Veneto, governed by the centre-right, has not yet been challenged. Proposals are also under discussion in Trento and Bolzano.

Umbria has become the fifth Italian region to pass a law regulating access to medically assisted suicide, joining Tuscany, Sardinia, Emilia-Romagna and . The regional council in Perugia approved the bill on Thursday with 11 votes in favour, six against and three abstentions, according to news agency ANSA. The centre-left majority backed the text, which was drawn up by the Luca Coscioni Association and supported by 4,801 signatures.

It was dedicated to Laura Santi, a Perugia journalist with multiple sclerosis who died by assisted suicide at home on 21 July 2025, after a three-year legal battle. Her widower, Stefano Massoli, attended the debate. Assisted suicide has been legal in Italy under strict conditions since a 2019 constitutional court ruling. Patients must have an irreversible condition causing intolerable suffering, depend on life-sustaining treatment and be able to make a free, informed decision.

Parliament has never passed national legislation setting out procedures, despite repeated calls from the court. Campaigners say this has caused bureaucratic delays and prolonged suffering, and regions have stepped in using their powers over healthcare.

Under the Umbrian law, each local health authority must set up a permanent multidisciplinary commission to verify that patients meet the requirements. The commission includes a palliative care doctor, psychiatrist, anaesthetist, psychologist, forensic doctor and nurse. Regional president Stefania Proietti, a centre-left independent close to Catholic circles, did not vote. She said the issue should be handled by parliament to ensure uniformity, and has stressed the need to expand palliative care. The right-wing Fratelli d’Italia voted against, while the centre-right Forza Italia abstained and members of the right-wing Lega were divided.

Regional vice-president Tommaso Bori, of the centre-left Partito Democratico (PD), called the vote “a conquest of civilisation, freedom and dignity”. Opponents in the chamber argued that health services should provide care rather than accompany patients to death. Marco Cappato, treasurer of the right-to-die association Associazione Luca Coscioni, accused the government and parliament of being “completely immobile”. The Meloni government argues that assisted suicide is a matter for the state, not the regions. It has challenged the Tuscan and Sardinian laws before the Constitutional Court and has said it will do the same with the legislation approved by Emilia-Romagna. The court partly upheld the Tuscan challenge in 2025 but confirmed that regions may regulate organisational aspects. Veneto, governed by the centre-right, has not yet been challenged. Proposals are also under discussion in Trento and Bolzano.