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The Pros And Cons Of Assisted Suicide

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idea of euthanasia or assisted suicide has been around since the sixteenth century and to this day is still talked about. In the United States assisted suicide is a widely debated topic on whether it should be legal or illegal. Only six states have currently legalized euthanasia (State by State...par 4). The process would help individuals who are suffering from an illness be able to end their suffering with an official administered drug prescribed by a physician. Assisted suicide should be legal because it is a way for people to humanely take their life if they cannot handle their illness any longer and it can also give family an opportunity to say goodbye without watching their loved one suffer. When someone becomes ill it can take a great toll on their lives causing them to consider the option of assisted suicide. Cancer, AIDS, and even mental illnesses could be reasons a person would consider administering assisted suicide. When a person becomes to ill to move and is constantly in pain they should be given the option to end it. They should not be made to suffer just because a law would consider it to be self suicide. If everyone got this opportunity there would …show more content…

If assisted suicide were to become legal in all fifty states, it would help ease the pain of family members going through their traumatic times. It would give the family a chance to say goodbye and also a chance to be with them their last hours and to prepare them for what is going to happen. Also, caring for a person with a terminal or incurable disease is extremely taxing, the family will almost inevitably come to harbor wishes that the patient's death will occur sooner rather than later so that their pain may end (Howard, par 3). If this were an option to everyone many families would never have to witness all the suffering and the pain, they would get to remember the memories of a happy and painless ending for their loved

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“The real reason for not committing suicide is because you always know how well life gets again after the hell is over.” People are unable to realize how their situation can be resolved better than having to kill themselves. Terminally ill patients are notorious for taking their lives before they can realize the mistake they are making. They believe that it is best for their situation, however, there are multiple reasons for why they should reconsider their actions before something terrible happens. Doctor assisted suicides should not be allowed because of the effects it has on the deceased loved ones and how more terminally ill patients are overcoming their disabilities.

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The right to assisted suicide is a heavily controversial and debated over topic that concerns people all around the United States. The arguments go back and forth about whether a dying patient has the right to end their life with the assistance of a doctor or physician. Some people are against it because of moral and religious reasons. Others are for it because of their compassions and respect for unhappy patients waiting to die naturally. Assisted suicide is prohibited by common law or criminal statute in all 50 U.S. states; medical aid in dying is specifically authorized in 5 states: Oregon, Washington, Vermont, Montana, and California.

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1026 Words | 5 Pages

If physician- assisted suicide was legal so many patients would be in peace not having to deal with all the pain they went through. The pain these patients are suffering from could continue for who knows how long, they should not have to go through the suffering if they don’t have to. The patient’s

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Physician-assisted suicide is a widely controversial issue that is discussed in today society. There are debates over whether it is ethically correct or whether assisted suicide should be legalized for the terminally ill. Each side of the arguments have different viewpoints concerning individual aspects of physician-assisted suicide. Such as certain guidelines that should exist if legalized. Advocates of physician-assisted suicide argue that it should be legal under circumstances such as great suffering through terminals illness.

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Should patients with non-standard reasons such as non-terminal conditions (i.e. pain, disability, depression, free choice and etc.) have the right to end their own lives with physician-assisted suicide? Physician-assisted suicide is a highly emotional and controversial ethical debate on whether patients have rights to end their lives with the lethal drug. A physician-assisted suicide is when a doctor helps a patient who is dying with the aid or instructions on how to commit life-ending acts (Gopal, 2015). In the United States there are five states (i.e. Oregon, Vermont, California, Colorado, Washington and Washington, DC) that legalized physician-assisted suicide but in one state (i.e. Montana) status is in dispute. Five states require an approval upon legislation whereas one state needs approval through a court ruling.

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953 Words | 4 Pages

Assisted suicide is a tough decision that comes down to what you morally believe in. The author of the article “The right to die” believes that doctor assisted suicide should be legalized in more states than just the four that it is. He approaches the topic from an ethical standpoint, stating its rights and wrongs. This essay will include reasons as to why assisted suicide should be legalized, how the system of death should work and if it is morally right. Only in four states is assisted suicide mandated by state law: Oregon, Washington, Vermont and California.

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1225 Words | 5 Pages

However, if the option of physician assisted suicide were available to patients, they would have the option of saving their families a significant amount of money, retaining both dignity and rectitude. As the current system is now, terminally ill patients suffer and wither away uselessly until their deaths, all the while seizing hundreds of thousands of dollars from their families. Although it may seem inhumane to encourage the terminally ill to die instead of getting treatment, it must also be taken into consideration that they are already going to die. Euthanasia would simply make their death meaningful and virtually painless for the patient and economically painless for

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628 Words | 3 Pages

Physician-assisted suicide should be legal throughout the United States as a lawful medical procedure for able, terminally ill adults with a limited amount of time, because it is a compassionate response to ease the suffering of dying patients and respect their rights and freedom. Currently, Oregon, Montana, New Mexico, Vermont, and Washington have adopted this policy. It is often offensive to call this suicide, because these patients are physically healthy and are not clinically depressed. “Dying patients who see their lives being destroyed by illness sometimes come to view death as the only way to escape their suffering and, therefore, as a means of self-preservation—the opposite of suicide.” (3) For most of these patients, there are no other options but to wait and stay stagnant in their often poor quality of life.

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Whenever U.S politics considered the question of euthanasia, they consistently stated that it is inadmissible, and legalizing it in our society is inhumane and damaging. In the state of Oregon law on medical suicide (Death with Dignity Act) was adopted in 1994, but only came into effect in November 1997, after fierce litigation over its cancellation. Opponents of the adoption of this law state that it will begin mass pilgrimage of terminally ill people in the world, so far the only place where euthanasia procedure can be carried out in compliance with all legal formalities. Lately in our country there has been talk about suicide when physician assisted. Although some doctors say that medical mediated suicide is a totally different thing, in reality, it's all the same euthanasia, with a difference in process.

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Imagine laying in a hospital bed, suffering in extreme pain, and wanting just be put out of misery. Imagine only having 1 more month to live and not being able to eat or walk again. Having a terminal illness takes away the quality of life, and a patient that is terminally ill is just suffering. Although assisted suicide may be considered inhumane, assisted suicide should be legal for terminally ill patients in the United States.

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505 Words | 3 Pages

A Gallup Poll last May found that nearly 70 percent of Americans agree that, “Out of decency and respect for the wishes of people suffering excruciating declines, doctors should be legally allowed to assist terminally ill patients end their lives with strict safeguards against abuse” (Gazette). There are already people believing that it is the right thing to do, however the issue is just trying to get it legalized throughout the whole United Sates. Montana, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and now recently California has already passed “right-to-die” laws. Oregon was the first state to pass this law and it was done so in 1994. Reno Gazette also observed, “In Oregon the number of suicides has been small—a total of 859 suicides in 17 years, last year there was 105 assisted-physician suicides out of a total of 34,160 deaths in the state” (Gazette).

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751 Words | 4 Pages

Despite assisted suicide’s reputation for straining religion, the Hippocratic Oath, and Palliative Care, assisted suicide should be a legal treatment nation-wide because it can retain a patient’s dignity, alleviate costs of medical care, and end suffering early. Most states in America have not sanctioned assisted suicide – and if one were to look up the mere reason as to why, one would be bombarded with glaring blue links screaming “Why Assisted Suicide Must Not Be Legalized.” It’s a hot potato argument flying back and forth between terminally ill patients and dated notions. Firstly, death is embraced as a climacteric moment wherein one attains spiritual understanding, hence, euthanasia is viewed as an inhumane method of death that interrupts this process.

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896 Words | 4 Pages

Even in states where it is legal, there is not much demand for assisted suicide. In 2013, 77 people in Oregon, died by assisted suicide. The issue with assisted suicide is patients are wanting to end their lives either because they are suffering from a terminal illness and are tired of suffering and want to end their life without pain. Assisted Suicide is becoming a problem in the United States and measures need to be taken. Assisted suicide started in the nineteenth century, when philosophers justified self- induced death for those who were sick of suffering.(CITATION)

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692 Words | 3 Pages

Social, medical and legal controversy surround this issue, leaving us with one important question: Should we, as a society, pass laws sanctioning assisted suicide. Social Issues Those who support legalising assisted suicide, claim that all people have the right to choose freely what they want to do with their lives without inflicting harm on others. This right to free choice includes the right to end one’s life. There are many people whose disease, handicap or

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838 Words | 4 Pages

The sick shouldn't have to watch their family go into financial debt due to expensive treatments that do not give permanent results. All US states should allow physicians to administer fatal drugs to sane patients that are suffering from definite terminal diseases in an effort to tranquilly die. Freedom is a nationwide right. Dying patients still carry this freedom, so they should be able to have the option of assisted suicide, as pitiful as it may sound.

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