Assisted Suicide Reva Kreeger CAP Blue Group 4/14/13

Assisted suicide, or assisted death, is a controversial topic across the world. Assisted suicide is the idea that terminally ill patients should have the choice to end their lives with the help of a doctor. This idea has been questioned throughout history, and, in America, there has been no real answer. Assisted suicide should be legalized nationally in America because it relieves the suffering of terminally ill patients. This practice is legal in Oregon, Washington, and Montana, but there must be more steps taken before it can be legalized in the entire country. Because assisted suicide helps people die with dignity, saves people money on unnecessary medical payments, and relieves terminally ill patients from unnecessary pain, each state should pass separate initiatives legalizing assisted suicide in the U.S. Assisted suicide and euthanasia have been around since the ancient civilizations but did not become a big issue in America until the 20th century. In ancient Greece and Rome, doctors freely helped suffering patients by administering lethal doses of drugs (ProQuest Staff, "Assisted Suicide). In early America, most people agreed that assisting a death was a crime; most of these beliefs came from religion the idea that killing is a sin. If someone assisted a death of another, they were treated the same as murderers. Around the turn of the 20th century, people began openly discussing the ideas behind assisted suicide, and whether it was such a bad thing to put a suffering patient out of his/her misery. The first legalization of assisted suicide was in Switzerland in 1942 followed by the Netherlands (1984) and Belgium (2002). In 1997, Oregon became the U.S. first state to legalize assisted suicide, and Washington legalized the practice in 2008. One of the most controversial cases surrounding assisted suicide in the U.S. is that of Jack Kevorkian. Kevorkian was a doctor who set up a suicide machine (Pickert, A Brief History), which helped 130 patients kill themselves. The courts could not seem to legally keep him in jail for very long, and many people started to wonder if he was committing a crime in the

first place. The case of Kevorkian brought the topic of assisted suicide to the surface of everyday life, and many people are beginning to take notice of the issue. Although assisted suicide affects a small number of people, the ideas and morals behind it relate to everyone. Many critics believe that legalizing assisted suicide will encourage people to use this method to kill themselves, but in reality, seventeen years after Oregon legalized assisted suicide, only 71 people had used the practice to end their lives. Because of these numbers, many people believe that assisted suicide is not a pressing issue, and it has remained a second-tier political issue (Allot, People). Assisted suicide needs to be considered in our state legislation because of the principles and ideas upon which it is based. Everyone has the right to self-determination, so they automatically have the right to end their lives even if that involves the help of another. They must be given the opportunity to make their own decisions about their death. People who deny assisted suicide, deny people their rights. In most places, [assisted suicide] occasionally resurfaces as a front-page news story (Allot, People), but is not often discussed at length. Assisted suicide may not directly affect many people, but its principles apply to everyone. Although assisted suicide is illegal in most of the world, there have been many attempts to legalize it. The first country to legalize assisted suicide was Switzerland in 1942. When they passed the code that made the practice legal, they compromised by saying that each assisted suicide had to be filmed, and if it was decided that the doctor helped a patient commit suicide for selfish reasons, he could be jailed. This enabled the code to pass because it satisfied both sides of the argument. The first country to outwardly legalize assisted suicide through a parliament was the Netherlands. Since 1984, the Netherlands had allowed assisted suicide based on a Dutch Supreme Court ruling, but under Dutch criminal law, physicians could still face prosecution

(infoplease). In 2000, the Dutch Parliament passed a law officially legalizing assisted suicide. These countries have used the courts as well as laws to nationally legalize assisted suicide. The two main ways that assisted suicide has been made legal in the U.S. are through the courts and through state initiatives. Montana legalized assisted suicide through their Supreme Court in the case of Baxter vs. Montana in which a man claimed that he had the right to end his own life as he wanted with the help of doctors. The court ruled for his case and assisted suicide was made legal in Montana. Both Oregon and Washington have passed state initiatives which allow terminally ill patients to request assistance in ending their lives. These citizens initiatives, the Death With Dignity Acts (ballotpedia), have been very successful in passing because the citizens can produce the law, and it does not have to pass through the state legislatures. Both Sweden and the Netherlands have made assisted suicide legal through national law, but this does not seem to be effective in America. However, this could be a third way of legalizing assisted suicide. Assisted suicide should be legalized because it prevents patients from being humiliated when their bodies and minds deteriorate. Many elderly people fear that their old age and illnesses will leave them helpless and dependent on everyone around them. People who know that their diseases will eventually lead to their minds and/or bodies deterioration want to prevent this from happening. Assisted suicide can help people who fear for their dignity as their illnesses worsen. Bernice Packford showed this fear when she requested to die while she was still healthy. She believed that the most horr[ifying] thought is that of being conscious and helpless (MacQueen, Bernice). This fear is very reasonable especially for people suffering from diseases that are known to rapidly deteriorate the mind and body such as Alzheimers disease. Assisted suicide should be made an option for those who wish to die while they are still

functioning. Many of the organizations that fight for the legalization of assisted suicide are known as Death with Dignity organizations because the main principle assisted suicide is based upon is everyone deserves the dignity of choice (rabble.ca). In other words, everyone should have the right to choose when they die and under what under what circumstances they die. Assisted suicide also prevents people from unnecessarily spending thousands of dollars on hospital and hospice treatments. Average costs of end of life care are around 30,000 dollars, and medical insurances do not cover much of the costs. These expenses can put families of terminally ill patients deep in debt, as they will be forced to cover the expenses of medical care. Even if a patient is put into hospice care, the prices are still extremely high, and as the situation worsens, they will only go up. Most terminally ill patients go through a time where they are no longer functional and are just awaiting their death. Still, the families have to pay for their loved ones care, and these unnecessary payments can be fixed by assisted suicide. Assisted suicide can help families with these payments because when it becomes clear that a patient is going to die, it seems cruel to both them and their families to keep them alive. Since end-of-life care is expensive and too often fails to improve the quality of life (CNN Money), it is unreasonable to force a family to pay for treatment that is given to a patient just to prolong their life when it is clear they will die soon. Assisted suicide would also end unnecessary money spent on care from the hospital. Hospitals should not have to waste millions of dollars keeping a dying patient alive yet they are forced to do so often. Assisted suicide saves people from the cost of unnecessary end of life payments. Assisted suicide can also prevent terminally ill patients from going through excruciating pain at the end of their lives. Most patients experience terrible pain during their last few weeks, and can do nothing but wait until their death for that the pain will be alleviated. In hospitals, the

goal of the doctors is to keep the patient alive, however much he suffers (Leith, A Brothers). Doctors do everything in their ability to keep a patient alive as long as possible even if it the cruel thing to do. They are very cautious and do not want to get in trouble for allowing a patient to die even if it is for their benefit. This means that patients are simply held in a prolonged state of pain. Doctors are allowed to give them morphine, but the regulated amount leaves patients in groaning, crying, sometimes begging, agony (Leith, A Brothers). Pancreatic and bone cancer patients especially suffer from incredible pain at the end of their lives, and it is inhumane to allow people to suffer through this when the only possible outcome is their death. Assisted suicide would help terminally ill patients escape this part of their disease so they would not have to suffer through all of the unnecessary pain. The three main ways to legalize assisted suicide in the U.S. are to have a nationwide law, to pass separate laws through the sates, or to use the court system. The best way to legalize assisted suicide in the U.S. is to have each state legalize the practice through citizens initiatives like Oregon and Washington. The main other way to legalize assisted suicide would be to have a nationwide law, but this would not work as well as having the states separately legalize assisted suicide. Having separate state votes would be better because there are fewer people that vote on laws in the states so the law has a better chance of passing. As assisted suicide gains support, the more conservative states could be swayed to vote for the practice. It would also not work to have the states legalize it through the courts because the process is long and it all comes down to the politics of the judge. Using citizens initiatives is the best way to legalize assisted suicide because it is more likely to pass if the citizens produce the law. People are starting to take action for assisted suicide, and it needs to be legalized efficiently. The best way to do this is to legalize assisted suicide through state initiatives.

Since assisted suicide helps people die with dignity, saves people from unnecessary health payments, and relieves terminally ill patients from unnecessary suffering, state governments should pass separate initiatives legalizing assisted suicide in the U.S. It is time for states to start to take action on assisted suicide because it would ease the burden of many terminally ill and elderly patients lives. Oregon, Washington, and Montana have already legalized assisted suicide and the other states need to follow their lead. Assisted suicide needs to be discussed because people should not be denied their rights any longer. The U.S., along with the rest of the world, should start to take action in legalizing assisted suicide.

Works Cited Allott, Daniel. "People Will Be Encouraged to Die Because of Health Care Costs." Assisted Suicide. Ed. Nol Merino. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Current Controversies. Rpt. from "The Doctor Will Kill You Now." American Spectator (1 Apr. 2009). Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. ballotpedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Washington_%22Death_with_Dignity_Act%22,_I nitiative_1000_%282008%29>. CNN Money. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://money.cnn.com/2012/12/11/pf/end-of-life-care-duplicate2.moneymag/index.html>. Compassion and Choices. Compassion & Choices, n.d. Web. 3 Feb. 2013. <http://www.compassionandchoices.org/>. This website is somewhat useful. It tells what steps this organization is taking to legalize assisted suicide, but does not give much of their arguments. They are one of the biggest pro assisted suicide organizations. Euthanasia Comes To Montana. The Weekly Standard. The Weekly Standard LLC, n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/015/930uapms.asp infoplease. Pearson Education,, n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://www.infoplease.com/spot/euthanasia1.html>. Leith, Prue. "A brother's suffering: it is so wrong that the law against assisted suicide means that dying patients are often left without adequate pain relief." Spectator 27 Oct. 2012: 27. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 4 Mar. 2013.

MacQueen, Ken. "Bernice Packford, 95, on why she wants to kill herself, despite being healthy, and why she thinks a doctor should be allowed to help: a conversation with Ken MacQueen." Maclean's 29 Mar. 2010: 19+. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. Pickert, Kate . "A Brief History of Assisted Suicide." Time U.S. Time Inc., n.d. Web. 3 Feb. 2013. <http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1882684,00.html>. This article gives a history of assisted suicide and is very useful. rabble.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://rabble.ca/columnists/2012/11/right-die-dignity>.

Annotated Bibliography Allott, Daniel. "People Will Be Encouraged to Die Because of Health Care Costs." Assisted Suicide. Ed. Nol Merino. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Current Controversies. Rpt. from "The Doctor Will Kill You Now." American Spectator (1 Apr. 2009). Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. This article talks about the financial part of assisted suicide and is written from a person who is against the practice. It was still useful to see what the arguments are for opponents. "Assisted Suicide." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2010. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 3 Feb. 2013. This is a basic summary of the debate on assisted suicide. Is very useful for background knowledge and an impartial analysis of the debate. ballotpedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Washington_%22Death_with_Dignity_Act%22,_I nitiative_1000_%282008%29>. This was good for defining legal terms, but gave no specific information on assisted suicide. CNN Money. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://money.cnn.com/2012/12/11/pf/end-of-life-care-duplicate2.moneymag/index.html>. This was not incredibly useful, but gave some good information on the cost of medical care. Compassion and Choices. Compassion & Choices, n.d. Web. 3 Feb. 2013. <http://www.compassionandchoices.org/>. This website is somewhat useful. It tells what steps this organization is taking to legalize assisted suicide, but does not give much of their arguments. They are one of the biggest pro assisted suicide organizations.

Glover, Peter C. "There Is No Justification for Legalizing Euthanasia." Assisted Suicide. Ed. Nol Merino. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Current Controversies. Rpt. from "Euthanasia: Can It Ever Be Right to Legalise It?" Catholic Insight 17.2 (Feb. 2009): 8-9. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 3 Feb. 2013. This man is against assisted suicide and gives his main points in a clear way. It will be useful for next year. Good Life, Good Death. Derek Humphry/ERGO, n.d. Web. 5 Mar. 2013. <http://www.finalexit.org/assisted_suicide_laws_united_states.html>. This was very helpful for the legal aspects of the paper and gave a lot of good information. Grayling, A. C. "It Is Compassionate to Permit Assisted Suicide." Assisted Suicide. Ed. Nol Merino. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Current Controversies. Rpt. from "Allowing People to Arrange Their Death Is a Simple Act of Kindness." Times 31 Mar. 2009. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 3 Feb. 2013. This person is for assisted suicide and explains some steps taken to legalize it. Its good for background knowledge. infoplease. Pearson Education,, n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://www.infoplease.com/spot/euthanasia1.html>. This was very useful for information on foreign actions towards assisted suicide. Leith, Prue. "A brother's suffering: it is so wrong that the law against assisted suicide means that dying patients are often left without adequate pain relief." Spectator 27 Oct. 2012: 27. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 3 Feb. 2013. This article shows and example of the pain people go through when they are terminally ill and how assisted suicide is the humane thing to allow. MacQueen, Ken. "Bernice Packford, 95, on why she wants to kill herself, despite being healthy, and why she thinks a doctor should be allowed to help: a conversation with Ken

MacQueen." Maclean's 29 Mar. 2010: 19+. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. This is about an elderly woman who is thinking about using assisted suicide. It is a good article because it tells about assisted suicide from a potential users perspective. rabble.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://rabble.ca/columnists/2012/11/right-die-dignity>. This is about dying with dignity and was very useful for that section of my paper. The Weekly Standard. The Weekly Standard LLC, n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. <http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/015/930uapms.asp>. This is an article about assisted suicide in Montana. It was somewhat useful. ProQuest Staff. "Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia Timeline." Leading Issues Timelines. 2013: n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 05 Mar 2013. This was extremely useful because it gives a background for assisted suicide throughout history. It tells about all the important events and how the idea got started. Pickert, Kate. "A Brief History of Assisted Suicide." Time U.S. Time Inc., n.d. Web. 3 Feb. 2013. <http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/ 0,8599,1882684,00.html>. This article gives a history of assisted suicide and is very useful for American related history. Quill, Timothy. "The Right to Die May Be an Important Part of End-of-Life Care." The Right to Die. Ed. John Woodward. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2006. At Issue. Rpt. from "Physician-Assisted Death in the United States: Are Existing 'Last Resorts' Enough?" The Hastings Center Report 38.5 (2008): 17-22. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 5 Mar. 2013. This is useful for the medical payments/financial part of the paper. It could be good to use when I argue the opposite side.