#euthanized

                In 1993 a businessman named Alvin Snyder, two attorneys named Eli Stutsman and Mark Trinchero, a doctor Peter Goodwin and a nurse Mariam Coppens started a political committee called Orgon Right to Die. The purpose of this committee was to pen and pass the Organ Death with Dignity act. In 1994 campaigning started for the death with dignity act that was later passed with a little over a 50% voter approval rate. By passing the Organ Right to Die act patients with terminal illnesses in Oregon where able to take part in physician assisted suicide. The passing of the act made Oregon the 1st state to allow physician assisted suicide, (History of the Death with Dignity act, 2020). many different acts and appeals stemmed from the passing of the Oregon Right to Die act some of the first followers being those form Maine and Vermont. between 2004 and 2014 in nationwide expansion of the act was beginning. This was started with a terminal brain cancer patient who ended up moving to Oregon so they could take advantage of be death with dignity act. The life and story of the patient change the physician assisted suicide movement and allowed for greater access by the expansion of set movement. Because of the previously mentioned patient policy reform began in a state-by-state basis and success in rewriting and remaking old laws and policies that outdated. But due to varying opinions and ethical debates very few states have actually legalized physician assisted suicide. (History of the Death with Dignity act, 2020)

                         Though the majority of U.S. states have strict laws against physician assisted suicides, some states have passed acts allowing this kind of services to be provided for chronically ill patients. A few of these states being Washington, Colorado, California, Hawaii and D.C. Most of which have different laws or acts protecting this service. For example, Colorado operates under the End of Life Options Act, that was instated in 2016 but did not take effect until 2017. The End of life Options Act of Colorado has strict criteria for physician assisted suicide, the criteria being:

A prognosis of six months or less;

Mental capacity to make an informed decision;

Residency in Colorado; and

Has requested and obtained a prescription for medical aid-in-dying medication.

(Colorado End of Life Options Act 2019)

               Most authorize states share similar criteria to the previously mentioned criteria and many have further rules for eligibility of individuals and the execution of the actual assisted suicide. Currently only 10 states allow PAS most of which are under different acts then the death with dignity act Some of which being the Elizabeth Whitefield End of Life Options Act; 2021 from New Mexico, the Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act; 2019 from New Jersey, and the Patient Choice and Control at the End of Life Act; 2013 from Vermont. ((Death with dignity acts - states that allow assisted death 2021).  

               Though many questions are raised physician assisted suicide the main question raised by physician assisted suicide (PAS) is the ethical dilemma behind the actual act itself. Is physician assisted suicide Ethical? Should any one group decide your fate or should a chronically ill person have the right to decide when they have fought hard and long enough? upon further research into the ethical side of physician assisted suicide I found two main camps and no real middle ground. One being for assisted suicide and one being decidedly against. Though each individual is allowed their own opinion it is important to remember what the law States and what is allowed under the law. As though you might believe one thing it might not fall in line with what is legal. This is of course prevalent when it comes to the death with dignity debate as there are very few states that have legalized PAS and many that It is still illegal and period

               For the side in favor of PAS there is no ethical dilemma nor is there reason for hesitation when it comes to penning and passing death with dignity acts. Having the right to choose what happens at the end of your life weather you are suffering or not is extremely important, just as it is in your young adult life. Most of those in favor of PAS believe it is the right of the people to decide when they die and how they die, they believe it is there constitutional right. By not allowing death with dignity acts and PAS in certain states it limits the options of the people, If States and lawmakers chose to take a harm reduction standpoint on this debate, and allowed better education of the options to terminally ill patients there is a chance that they might see a reduction in the suicide and self-injury rate per state to state. The words to best explain this side of the argument belong to Dr. Kevorkian who said, “I didn’t do it to end the life. I did it to end the suffering the patient is going through. The patient is obviously suffering. What’s a doctor supposed to do, turn his back?” (Jack Kevorkian, MD - Euthanasia 2019). Not only do these words truly explain how the medical and science communities feel about PAS, but also the patients who choose this path, or would choose it given the choice.

               For the side opposing physician assisted suicide there are two main arguments presented by the Medical and Science communities. Those being that legalizing PAS is the path toward euthanasia and the moral dilemma physicians licensed to carry out PAS will face. These dilemmas are voiced in an article published by the journal of Oncology in 2017. The author describes how, “PAS is much less about physical pain and suffering than it is about the desire to have the control to end one’s life”, and how, “PAS is a slippery slope toward the practice of euthanasia”, (Reasons to Reject Physician Assisted Suicide/Physician Aid in Dying 2017). The author raises a few good questions here, f for instance if physician assisted suicide were to be made legal in every state would the process be abused? And is PAS the beginnings of euthanasia? On top of the concerns presented by the Medical and Science communities, many religious beliefs and followers do not believe in PAS as it is a direct violation to their beliefs. An example of this is teachings of the Catholic Church, some groups apart of the Catholic church, such as Father William P. Saunders wrote in an articular for the Catholic Herald, would go as far as to write, “with PAS, they (physicians) now formally are cooperating with the evil of taking of a person’s life.” (The Catholic Church's teaching on assisted suicide, 2018).

                Regardless of ones own opinion on the physician assisted suicide or death with dignity acts there is ample amount of both good and bad representation in the media. From TV shows two actual historical cases death with dignity and physician assisted suicide continuously receives a bad rap. A good example of this is Jack Kevorkian, nicknamed Dr. Death, who was an American pathologist who whole heartedly believed in PAS and Death with dignity to the point of taking matters into his own hands. In 1998 Kevorkian was arrested for willingly euthanizing a man with Lou Gehrig's disease, he was tried for the one death, even though it is believed he assisted in over 130 euthanasians which he conduced in his van. When news broke of what Kevorkian had done it caused wide sweat panic as well as controversy. Similarly to the issues raised with the Kevorkian case the media continues to glorify and shame character who take part in this kind of ‘Angle of death’ behaviors and actions creating a twisted opinion based on falsified information of the death with dignity and PAS agenda.

               Regardless any ethical or moral debate, in my opinion it is the right of the people to have control over their lives and bodies. Similar to the pro life vs pro choice I believe that if it's my body it should be my choice. And in the end if somebody really wants something, in this case to end their suffering, they will find a way to do it. Whether it be an a law sanctioned medical facility full of sterile medical grade tools or in the woods or ones home they will find a way. Because as humans wouldn't force an animal to suffer, but we readily allow terminally ill people with no foreseeable chance of cure, be forced to live out a painful existence that brings no good or joy to them. To me that is the ethical debate, not whether or not a doctor is allowed to euthanize an already dying  patient, but rather if a lawmaker can choose whether or not a painful and thankless existence should be forced upon any one human being.  

                                                     References

History of the Death with Dignity act. (2020, July 15).            

Colorado End of Life Options Act. (2019, August 19).

Death with dignity acts - states that allow assisted death. (2021, March 30)

Jack Kevorkian, MD - Euthanasia. (2019, December 18).  

O’Rourke. (2017, August 29). Reasons to Reject Physician Assisted Suicide/Physician Aid in Dying.