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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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The next criteria is that you have to be a resident of the state that has that act under. There are several ways to establish your residency in that state, as determining residency does not request for a person to live so many years in the state to become one. When providing proof of residency, you proofs “can include a state issued ID such as a driver's license, documents showing the patient rents or owns property in the state, state voter registration, or a recent state tax return” (Death With Dignity). The third criteria that must be met is that you must be fully competent and be able to make decisions on their own. Most of the patients who request to die are speaking out of pain or depression.

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The Death with Dignity Act, also known as the Right-to-Die Bill, allows terminally-ill adults grant their wishes to hasten their death in some states where it is legalized. These patients that are mentally capable of making their own decisions have the right to voluntarily request and receive a prescription medication to end their suffering sooner. Oregon, Washington, Vermont, and California are the only states that practice the Death with Dignity Act. Oregon voters approved Death with Dignity Act in 1994 and went into effect in 1997. Washington implemented the same act in 2008 followed by Vermont in 2013 which is the first state to pass through legislative process.

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There are currently 3 states that allow PAS which is Oregon, Vermont, and Washington. Though these states may allow it but there are strict guidelines and requirements the client seeking help must pass. In all three states you must be of legal age and a resident in their state. Which means if the person lived in California they would have to move to one of these states. They would have to have a terminal disease and they have 6 or less months to live, and have to be capable to make their own choices for him or herself.

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The Pros And Cons Of Physician Assisted Suicide

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Another noteworthy fact is the candidate must be completely certain of their decision and gives oral and written consent 15 days apart and at least 3 weeks before they plan to end their life. PAS should be legal because in the eight states it is legal in, they have set up laws so that the patients cannot abuse PAS. These states know it is the individual's right to choose if they are capable of doing

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Why Is Physician Assisted Suicide Morally Wrong

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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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Only four states in the USA have legalized it, California, Oregon, Vermont and, Washington. These states allow patients to end their lives require that the patient be 18 years of age or older, a resident of the state, competent and capable of communicating their wishes, and diagnosed with a terminal illness that will lead to death within six months. Legalizing it across America would beneficial because, it allows the patient to end pain and suffering, relieves some stress from family and/or care takers, and allows them to stay home in comfort.

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End of Life Action Acts/, are Oregon (1994), Washington (2008), Montana (2009), Vermont (2013), California (2015), Colorado (2016), and Washington D.C. (2016). There are many regulations and rules that the patients have to participate and meet the criteria for to even be considered for assisted suicide. Even through all these hardships, the patients are still undergoing a terrible disease that, for all states (except Montana), has to be a determined death within 6 months. The patients only wish to for someone to alleviate them of the pain and suffering they going through.

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Only legal in three states, only 255 people receive the lethal prescription from physician raging from ages 42 to 91 and all of them where diagnosed with terminal cancer (Gordon). One day you could find yourself struggling with the options, you need to know your facts and you will find that you will want to option to physician assisted suicide either for yourself or for a loved one. Doctor assisted suicide should be done only if terminally ill, and require a living will in order to respect the right of the individual. Individuals should have the freedom to choose between active euthanasia (injection of sedatives) or passive euthanasia (rejecting treatment)

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In The United States of America, only six states have physician-assisted suicide (PAS) legalized. California, Colorado, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and Washington D.C. have physician-assisted suicide legalized via legislation. However, the state of Montana has physician-assisted suicide legal via court ruling only. Physician-assisted suicide has been a popular topic recently due to Brittany Maynard, who had to move from California, which did not have physician-assisted suicide legal at the time, to the state of Oregon, where it was legal. She moved because she had brain cancer, and wanted to end her life peacefully at home, surrounded by family, instead of dying slowly in a hospital.

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In order for a patient to receive the prescription for medication, a physician must declare the patient to be terminally ill, which means they have an incurable and irreversible illness, and they must have no more than six months to live. Also, a second doctor must agree with the first doctor. In addition, the terminally ill patient has to be mentally competent and able to administer the medication themself (“Threat” A12). These rules act as safeguards to ensure that the patient requesting aid in dying is making an informed decision and is acting voluntarily (Gopal

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This act would mirror the legislation regarding death with dignity in Oregon, and the requirements set by the legislation. The CARE Act would allow for terminally ill patients who meet certain criteria to request medication that will end his/her life in a dignified and humane manner that is completely up to the discretion of the patient. The requirements would be that the patient has to be as resident of the state of Pennsylvania, the request must come from the patient themselves on a form that would be standardized by the statute, the request must be witnessed by two individuals, one of the individuals being someone who is not related to the patient making the request and has absolutely no financial stake in the process. The patient making the request must be at least 18 years of age, and must be deemed competent by all health officials providing treatment. The next requirement would be that witnesses must agree that the patient is of sound mind at the point of signing, and the patient’s physician must attest to the fact that the patients illness is terminal with less than six months projected to live, there is no hope of recovery, and all options have been exhausted in terms of palliative or comfort care.

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These conditions include the patient having to get “two doctors to agree, before prescribing the drugs, that a patient has six months or less to live” (NPR). This law also requires that the patient requests a prescription “...for an aid-in-dying drug without influence from others. ”(CCCC). For these reasons, the fear that people who opt for physician assisted suicide are unable to truly choose death for themselves is misplaced. People who qualify for death with dignity should not have to fear a doctor turning them down when what they are requesting is

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The “Death with Dignity” law is applicable to everyone in the state above the age of twenty-one. The law covers many areas to make sure that the right to die is not abused or used for the wrong reasons. For instance, in the state of Oregon, only terminally ill person with six month or less left to live can make a request to take a medication that will bring the anticipated death. The person has to be able to prove the residency, clear state of mind, and the absence of any mental illness. In addition, the person should be able to take the medication orally without any help (“Public Health’s Role”).

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“Adult residents of Oregon (18 years or older), who are terminally ill can make a request to a licensed physician in Oregon for lethal medication. The request must be made orally and must be made in writing, it needs to be signed and dated by the patient and the patient needs two witnesses. The oral request must be repeated no less than fifteen days after the initial request.” (Lewis p. 128, 129). Another state that allows physician assisted suicide is Washington.

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In the state of Oregon only an adult resident that has the mental capacity to make this type of decision, has been diagnosed with a terminal disease, and has voluntarily expressed their desire to die may submit a written request for medication to end their life in a dignified manner (Oregon Revised Statute, 1994). It should be considered cruel to deny any terminally ill person that opportunity. Some doctors feel assisted suicide is a good option but do not want to write the prescription themselves, so they will send the patient elsewhere. Abandoning their patient because “doctors prize their self-image above the patient’s needs” (Angell, 2014, para. 9). A doctor stating that physician assisted suicide is a good option but refers the patient to a different doctor to prevent their name from being on the prescription is a good foundation for an unethical situation.

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