The Court orders the ASL Napoli 3 Sud to equip itself with an eye-controlled self-administration system for Irene

The Torre Annunziata Court, with an order dated October 9, required the ASL Napoli 3 Sud to provide an autonomous eye-directed drug self-administration system for Irene, a 72-year-old woman with ALS, who already meets the requirements for physician-assisted suicide. The device used in Tuscany by Libera was transferred to Irene's home on September 14 and will now need to be duplicated for use in Campania.

Procedure and timing

The local health authority will have to replicate the Tuscan device and complete the installation of the software that connects the eye tracker to the infusion pump. The Tuscan device can be returned for use by other patients: the ordinance stipulates that the Campania version will be available by January if the local version is not ready.

Irene: "I haven't changed my mind about wanting to die through physician-assisted suicide. When I tried the eye tracker that will help me do it and saw that I could easily complete the procedure, I felt reassured. At this point, I've decided to die freely, choosing when, but I haven't yet set a specific date.

Even though the pain is unbearable, I have to endure it because I want to go knowing that my daughter and husband are doing well, so I need to spend more time with them. I haven't set a date, but I want to be sure I can decide freely, not because I won't be able to use the machine that's now available.

Filomena Gallo, lawyer and national secretary of the Luca Coscioni Association, stated: "Choosing to wait doesn't mean losing the protection you've earned. It's an important decision for other patients too." She added that an autonomous system could assist other people who meet the requirements for self-administration and cited the "Liberi Subito" bill introduced in Campania to define uniform pathways and clear timelines for physician-assisted suicide assistance.

Irene, 72, has been identified by a fictitious name; the decision concerns access to assisted suicide and is linked to the use of the device in Campania.