Assisted Suicide Argumentative Essay

Assisted suicide is a topic that has ignited a severe debate due to the controversy that surrounds its implementation. Assisted suicide occurs when a patients expresses their intention to die and request a physician to assist them in the process. Some countries like Oregon, Canada, and Belgium have legalized the process terming it as an alternative to prolonged suffering for patients who are bound to die. Unlike euthanasia where a physician administers the process, assisted suicide requires that the patient voluntarily initiates and executes the process. Although there exists concession such a process is important to assist patients die without much suffering, there has emerged criticism on its risk of abuse and as an expression of medical

Brittany Maynard, a woman known for her advocacy in the controversial topic of assisted suicide, officially ended her life this fall after learning of her fatal brain tumor. After complaining of horrible headaches, she decided to see a doctor where they gave her this traumatic news. She had two corrective surgeries to try and stop the growth of her large tumor, but they were unsuccessful. Her doctor then suggested full brain radiation, but after months of researching this option, along with many other, she knew her quality of what short life she had left would quickly deteriorate. With the help of her family, friends, and newly-wed husband, she made the decision to move with her loved ones from her California home to Oregon, where death with

Since 1993, Compassion in Dying, which is a nonprofit charitable organization, has provided information, consultation, and emotional support to patients that were terminally ill and wanted to consider assisted dying by self-administration of medication as one of their end of life options. The team for this organization includes nurses, psychologists, physicians, and clergy as was as laypeople from the community who help patients, their families, and their physicians examine the choices available to achieve peaceful and humane deaths (Lee). To be eligible to use this Act a person must be a resident of Oregon, 18 years or older, capable of making and communication health care decisions for him or herself, mentally competent, and diagnosed with a terminal illness that will lead to death within six months. This article uses data from the files of Compassion in Dying, and they describe 34 individuals who approached Compassion wanting to use the Death with Dignity Act and who died during the first year of the Act’s implantation. A downfall to this Act that has caused some problems is delays in processing a

Imagine suffering day to day with consistent hospital visits, numerous medications, and unbearable pain for the next six months of your life, then being told that dying peacefully is not a granted privilege. Then imagine not being able to die in a controlled and dignified process like you prefer to. How would that affect the way you feel about death and the rest of your life you have left? Millions of people suffering from terminal illnesses consider physician-assisted suicide, but their wishes are rejected due to state and government beliefs. In fact, only five states out of fifty have a law permitting citizens the right to participate in physician-assisted suicide. That leaves just only 10% of the United States entitling critically ill patients to die with nobility. However, many citizens are commencing to lean toward physician-assisted suicides once they ascertain they hold a terminal illness.

Today, most states do not honor the wills of their terminally ill citizens wishing to end their suffering with dignity and compassion. Even with accurate identification of terminal illness prompting legality of some end-of-life directives, most terminal patients must adhere to conventional symptomatic treatments imposing slow physical and mental deterioration without regard to other feasible options. Information garnered from the experience of Oregon’s legalization of physician assisted suicide illuminates the feasibility of this end-of-life option. Physician assisted suicide is beneficial for terminal patients choosing to circumvent imminent mental and physical indignities; therefore this end-of-life option should be legally executable devoid of prosecution.

In Oregon, as of 2014, the three most frequently mentioned end-of-life concerns were: loss of autonomy (91.4%), decreasing ability to participate in activities that made life enjoyable (86.7%), and loss of dignity (71.4%) (Oregon Health Authority). Physician-assisted suicide is a controversial topic that continues to divide federal and state governments and citizens everywhere around the country and world. In what’s known as “Death With Dignity Laws” that have already been passed in Oregon, Washington, Vermont, and likely California, doctors are able to write prescriptions to patients, who fall within strict guidelines, who wish to end their lives. These laws follow strict guidelines including; a terminal diagnoses with less than six

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld court decisions in Washington and New York states that criminalized physician-assisted suicide on July 26, 1997.12 They found that the Constitution did not provide any “right to die,” however, they allowed individual states to govern whether or not they would prohibit or permit physician-assisted suicide. Without much intervention from the states individuals have used their right to refuse medical treatment resulting in controversial passive forms of euthanasia being used by patients to die with dignity such as choosing not to be resuscitated, stopping medication, drinking, or eating, or turning off respirators.9

deaths every day. Within these 153,000 deaths, about 90% of them are terminally ill patients

On the morning of April 20th, 2017, nearly a year ago as of the writing of this paper, Charlie and Francie Emerick held hands for one last time. After months of preparation, both physically and mentally, the couple was ready. They were about to commit assisted suicide (Aleccia). While many argue against the ideals of assisted suicide, which is the act of, with the help of a physician, ending your life, I believe that, under the proper legislation, it is an acceptable form of death. While some people may argue that death should be natural, doctors won’t do it, and that it’s a cry for help, it’s obvious that this is a considerable alternative which is a genuine option to the end of life.

Rights are a privilege and Legal autonomy has changed over time. From the status of the

One problem with assisted suicide is cost. Governor Brown has a lot of money so he has the option, but about twelve million Californians have a low income. Medicare and other health options in California and Oregon do not cover basic treatments and hospice. If someone who does not make a lot of income wants to have the treatments to keep them alive they will not have the money and physician assisted suicide could be the easier and cheaper option (Hale).

Many believe that a person has the right to do what they wish with their bodies and what it can endure. But in some cases, a patient can encounter a situation that they have to recognize that their body does not have the capacity to function the way it should. This is where the option of assisted suicide comes to play, the patient must decide whether they would want to end their treatment knowing that it will only delay the inevitable. In Canada, a patient does have the option of assisted suicide with a few conditions. One is that “they are at least 18 years of age and capable of making decisions with respect to their health” (Criminal Code, 1895). This age restriction to some patients could appear more painful than their actual illness. This is regarding the patients who are children that will experience similar circumstances with those who are older. The only difference is they must endure all that pain, suffering, and feeling of uselessness until they are even fortunate enough to

Enacted in late 1997, the “Death With Dignity Act (DWDA)” involves the voluntary self-administration of lethal medications. This process, according to the requirements, does not constitute suicide (“Death With Dignity Act”). In addition to being a resident of Oregon, the patient must be at least 18 years old, capable of making and communicating health care decisions, and diagnosed with a terminal illness that will lead to death within six months. According to recent data, the amount of DWDA prescriptions has steadily increased with average increments of 7 people per year since its enactment, with the exception being a spike from 155 to 218 between 2015 and 2016. The amount of DWDA deaths, however, do not completely match the numbers; although 1,545 received prescriptions between 1997 and 2016, only 991 patients died from ingesting the medication (“Death With Dignity Act”). This brings about an interesting case in the discussion regarding the will to live of these patients, and persuasion to pursue more options. Evidently, not all patients ended their life after receiving the medication to do so, and although their reasons may never be revealed, it is possible to conclude that some number of these circumstances occurred due to a “change of heart”; dissonance in the matter is still present to

Terminally ill patients may prefer to end their lives before they lose their autonomy to make decisions due to a worsening state from their conditions. It is worth mentioning that patients are allowed at

42 percent of Americans have had a “friend” or “relative” suffer from a fatal, terminal illness or coma in the last “five years.” More than half of these patients and 23 percent of the “general public” could not obtain a life-sustaining treatment so, 84% of people approve that a terminally ill patient should be able to choose how and when they die, (NHDD). Assisted suicide - this is defined as the attempt to take one’s life with the intentional assistance of another person, usually a physician, (Duhaime). In five U.S states, physician-assisted suicide is legal, (ProCon). There are certain criteria that terminally ill patients must obtain in order to have the assisted suicide approved. For example, you must be eighteen or older, diagnosed with a terminal disease that will end your life within six months maximum, etc, (Physician Assisted Suicide). There are many benefits of assisted suicide, and it should be legalized in more states.