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The Pros And Cons Of Physician Assisted Suicide

1086 Words5 Pages

Physician-Assisted suicide is legal in five out of the fifty states in America. These states include: California, Montana, Oregon, Vermont and Washington. Physician-assisted suicide is considered acceptable when a patient has less than six months to live. Physician-assisted suicide was publicly brought to attention in 1990 after Dr. Kevorkian assisted over 40 people into committing suicide in Michigan. Before the process starts, the patient must meet the certain requirements before given a lethal drug. The requirements the patient has to meet before going through the process is, being 18 years or older, holding legal residency in the required state, having less than six months to live and has to have two oral request (the oral request have to be fifteen days apart), as well as a written request. …show more content…

The law is very similar to the Oregon and Washington but it is a little less restrictive. Hospital, doctors, and pharmacists are allowed to opt out of the program, but all doctors are required to inform terminal patients about the program. Before governor Peter Shumlin signed the Act he said “all it does is give those who are facing terminal illness, are facing excruciating pain, a choice in a very carefully regulated way.” Bob Ullrich is a board member of group called Patient Choices Vermont, Bob has been pushing for the Act for ten years and was standing next to governor Shumlin while he signed the Patient Choice and Control at the End of Life Act. A group of opponents were furious about the act being legal in the state that they are dedicating their time to find a cure for terminally ill patients. Experts estimate that doctors will give ten to twenty lethal prescriptions each year, with an even smaller number of patients that would want to actually use the drug. [Medical News

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