Argumentative Essay On Euthanasia

In 1997, Oregon passed The Oregon Death With Dignity Act, which became the first law to permit physician-assisted suicide. Since then, six other states in the U.S. have joined Oregon. The topic debates that assisted death goes against religion and that it devalues human life. Many churches will tell people that if anyone commits suicide, that person will be condemned to hell. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) stated, “The movement to legalize euthanasia does not enhance freedom or self-determination because many of those fighting to kill themselves are depressed and need treatment or may be unduly influenced by familial, societal, or institutional pressures to end their lives. Furthermore, one cannot enhance human freedom and dignity by devaluing human life, the bishops explain” (“Euthanasia Devalues Human”). However, that’s far from the truth, people that choose assisted death have one hundred percent control of the whole process. Because most of the country doesn’t fully agree with physician-assisted death, it continues to be very controversial.

Grey’s Anatomy fans may remember an episode in season six in which there was a patient that was grappling with terminal lung cancer, she then decided that she wanted to end her life. Not by jumping off a bridge or shooting herself, but by a lethal injection. She asked her doctor, Teddy if she would sign off, but the rule with physician aided suicide is that you need two signatures. This caused conflict in the hospital between moral values and ethics. Over the past few decades, assisted death has been a debate in the government. Is it murder? Is it ethically ok? In today’s world, the controversy of physician aided death (PAD) is a problem that should be decided on once and for all.

The debate on euthanasia is never ending. It is an important topic that debates whether assisted death is ethical or

Euthanasia or doctor assisted suicide is legal in only seven states in the United States. There are two types of euthanasia passive and active; active is the more controversial one. Active euthanasia is when a doctor prescribes a medication that will end the patient’s life whereas passive is the doctor withholding any further treatment to the patient (Nordqvist). Euthanasia is only an option to a patient who has a prognosis of six months or less to live. Active euthanasia should only be legal when multiple board certified doctors agree to the patient’s decision and it is absolutely necessary to be a choice in cases where there is no treatment. The reason euthanasia is illegal in majority of the United States is that many people believe that it should be illegal due to personal beliefs and values. However, everyone does not share the same beliefs and it should be based on the patient’s decision and their doctor’s approval. A sound-minded person with a prognosis of an inevitable death should not be forced to live out the rest of their life in pain and should have the right to die in peace.

Should a person have the right to decide when to end their fate and suffering? The medical term is called Euthanasia, which is the decision of a patient to end their life by demanding doctors to cease life support in a hospital. Also known as Physician aid in dying or assisted suicide, Euthanasia is considered illegal in most states within the United States with an exception of Oregon, Vermont, California, Colorado, Washington, Montana (Court Ruling) and the District of Columbia, according to CNN. With opposing views from liberals and religious conservatives, euthanasia has certainly been a controversial topic. Optimistic people believe the patient has the right to decide when to die, terminally ill patients face excruciating pain and it isn’t morally correct to leave the world in pain. However, religious concerns have been a huge argument against PAD, traditionalists believe there is only God that can end one’s life. Each argument has it’s own benefits but in an evolving world, Should euthanasia be considered legal? A hospital consists of limited resources, therefore it makes us question if these resources should be utilized on a patient who is soon to die or has no desire to live. Who is the government or a facility to decide the fate of patient who is clearly suffering? With the right to die, limited resources within a hospital, religious concerns, government involvement in end-of-life decisions, and healthcare implications, Euthanasia or Physician Assisted Suicide should be made legal within all of the United States.

Death is classified many things by people. Some realize its unavoidable, while otherwise are fearful of death. What the people are fearful of is our finitude. Euthanasia is the process of a painless killing of someone suffering from an incurable and painful disease or in irreversible coma. (cite) This however is a controversial topic as it is illegal in most countries. There are two different types that will be discussed, that being euthanasia and assisted suicide.

Kathleen Carter was eighty-nine years old when she traveled to Switzerland in order to end her suffering. Kathleen suffered from spinal stenosis, a paralyzing disease that causes severe pain, weakness and numbness. Euthanasia is legal in Switzerland which is where she traveled with her family to stay in an apartment like room; she spent her final day saying goodbye them. She first was given a sedative to settle her nervousness then shortly after, while sitting on the couch with family, she drank a sodium pentobarbital solution, which ended her pain and suffering. Kathleen is a prime example as to why euthanasia should be legalized. The word euthanasia comes from the Greek for "the good death" and refers to ending one's life on compassionate grounds. The term today comes with its controversies such as people should have the right to choose their own death, but also throughout history it has been morally incorrect to kill, or assist in killing, another human being.

1]Euthanasia, derived from Greek literally means good death. It is the act or practice of killing someone who is terminally ill or injured in order to prevent any more suffering. Some people could call it mercy killing. But is killing someone prematurely right? Why haven't more countries legalized euthanasia? Ask someone involved in caring of the terminally ill; they would simply argue that it is a slippery slope to assisted murder.

Currently the U.S. Supreme Court has decided that physician-assisted suicide really is based on where you live and the states’ right. Only four U.S. states have a law legally allowing physician assisted suicide. Many have questioned whether Physician - Assisted suicide is an okay course of action. According to the 1980 declaration from the Vatican, Jura et Bona, "euthanasia", or "mercy killing" is defined as "an action or an omission which of itself or by intention causes death, in order that all suffering may in this way be eliminated." Physician assisted suicide is a disputed, complicated matter that often splits the public. Physician - Assisted and Euthanasia has been a legalized course of action for quite some time, but it has flawed logic, as well as it is immoral.

Before I go into depth about James Rachels’ position on euthanasia I will discuss what is euthanasia. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, euthanasia is defined as “the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (such as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy” and of which in most cases can only be done by a doctor. Euthanasia has been practiced and debated for its ethics since as early as the 15th century among ancient Greeks and Romans who had tended to support its practices but not always administered in the most ethical standards.

Anthony Bland spent three years in a "persistent vegetative state" before the court finally granted his wish to die, 70-year-old Mrs. Boyes' was so ill that she "screamed like a dog" whenever someone touched her. Nancy Cruzan, lost control of her car one day and suffered serious injuries from which she would never recover, she was a spastic quadriplegic who suffered "permanent muscle and tendon damage." (Docker 3) All of these people had the same wish, they all wished to no longer experience pain and suffering, some people don’t believe in euthanasia and physicians suicide because of religious reasons, or because it can be considered "unethical." However, in most cases it is actually more humane, rather than making people suffer from an incurable disease that they are never going to recover from. Euthanasia and physicians assisted suicide should be legalized because it relieves suffering, it would prevent the patients from committing suicide themselves, it is less painful for not only the patient but also their loved ones both financially and emotionally, reassures people that there is another way out and they don’t have to die a painful death, and would prevent many court battels.

According to Wisconsin Right to Life, Euthanasia is the direct killing of a person, usually by injecting a lethal substance. Society would think there is one step to this procedure, but it could be depending on if someone does it illegally or take the legal route. One way is by going through these steps which are, first a coma is induced by intravenous administration of barbiturates, followed by a muscle relaxant. The patient usually dies as the result of anoxemic caused by the muscle relaxant. When death is delayed, intravenous potassium chloride is also given to hasten cardiac arrest.

At the beginning of your opening argument, you created a strawman fallacy by misrepresenting the definition of euthanasia. You said that euthanasia was a doctor killing a patient, but it is a painless death with the consent of the patient and most of the time the doctor is not even present. There is also a substantial difference between murder and euthanasia. Murder is the unlawful premeditated killing of one human by another and euthanasia is legal and has to be passed by the patient. The doctor usually prepares something for the patient to take as well. We are also not advocating involuntary euthanasia, which we believe is murder because it is without the consent of the patient. The patients also have to be in full consciousness and in the right state of mind to make that decision. You expressed that euthanasia is abominable because the Nazis did it involuntarily to anyone who was infirm, but nowadays euthanasia does not work that way. Euthanasia is for the people that are terminally ill and have no chance of survival. It saves them weeks or even months of suffering and instead gives them a chance to pass with their families and loved ones. If they are not given the opportunity of euthanasia, it is a possibility that they could commit suicide. There was a man named Maier-Clayton that committed suicide because euthanasia was not an option for him. In your speech you said that euthanasia was inhumane, but is it inhumane to end the pain and suffering in a peaceful way, where

Physician-assisted death (or PAD) is when a person that does not want to live due to a terminal and painful illness asks for help from a physician or doctor in taking their own life. Like PAD, euthanasia is when a person who is suffering from a terminal illness is allowed to die with dignity through the administration of a lethal dose of medicine, usually by a physician. Euthanasia differs from PAD in that the person suffering may or may not be able to let other people know that they want to have their life ended. Many people let loved ones know that they would not want to live if they fell into a vegetative state if they were in a bad accident or fell ill. Very sick people and their loved ones seek out help with euthanasia or PAD in order to die with the dignity before the sickness ravages their body. Being able to end your life prematurely is very controversial in our society even for those who are very sick and are likely to die anyway. Although there are many countries around the world that allow for some sort of euthanasia or PAD, there are very few states in the US that allow it currently. America needs to start accepting euthanasia and PAD since it is becoming a more-accepted practice across the globe and because it provides dignity in dying for those suffering from painful and terminal diseases.

Envision a situation where one of your family members is diagnosed with end-stage cancer that has spread throughout their entire body. They are helplessly suffering from pain that cannot be controlled with any type of treatment or pain medications and they are losing all quality of life. While some doctors believe that assisted suicide is morally wrong, it is the right way to end the pain and suffering of terminal illnesses in certain situations. If that family member could be given the option to use assisted suicide to end their life, they wouldn’t have to go through so much unnecessary suffering and they would be able to die with dignity.