As moral dilemmas about ending life become increasingly common, physicians of all specialties will be confronted with questions from patients and their families. Is it right to end the life of a terminally ill patient who is undergoing severe pain and suffering? Under what circumstances can euthanasia be justifiable, if at all? Is there a moral difference between killing someone and letting them die? Should human beings have the right to decide on issues of life and death? Those in favor of euthanasia argue that in a civilized society, people should be allowed to die without pain and in dignity and that others should be allowed to help them do so if they can’t manage to on their own. They say that decisions concerning life and death should be up to the individual. Patients have the right to refuse treatment even if this leads to their death. In fact, not allowing people to be able to choose to die violates their personal freedom and human rights. It's immoral, they say, …show more content…
Religious believers are not the only groups that refute the practice of euthanasia. Many non-religious Americans also struggle with the idea of killing dependent medical patients. Even if some people don’t see it as morally incorrect, they might still think that euthanasia should be prohibited for fear that it could be abused, used as a cover for murder, or that it might lead to situation in which it becomes normal to kill people who are no longer useful for society. The topic of euthanasia is also highly controversial within the medical community. The debate is centered on the personhood of the patient, and whether or not taking a life is within the rights of medical doctors. Doctors swear to the Hippocratic Oath by pledging, “to do no further harm,” to their patients. Is taking a life through euthanasia within the limits of the oath? Doctors must consider whether their act of taking a life is ethical or an attempt to “play