Euthanasia Should Not Be Legal

The subject of legalizing physician-assisted suicide is hotly debated these days. There have been many high profile cases including Dr. Jack Kevorkian in the 90’s to the young Oregonian Brittany Maynard who ended her life just this year. Physician-assisted suicide is currently legal in Oregon, Washington, and Montana. However, even where legal, it is unethical for medical professionals to engage in assisting patients to end their lives. There are many good alternatives to physician-assisted death available to terminally ill patients. Physician-assisted suicide should not be legalized.

To begin, I would like to take a utilitarian approach to the subject of euthanasia. Utilitarians believe that an action should cause the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. As a terminally ill person continues to render further implications of their disease, more and more pain will bestow upon them. They may become bed ridden and unable to enjoy the activities and pleasures that made their life intrinsically good. As time

People make decisions every single day of their lives. Although, people with a terminal diagnosis still have the capability to make decisions, they are not given the legal right to a physician assisted suicide. A choice some may desire in their final days. Once the person with the terminal diagnosis has met the specific criteria he or she should decide what would be optimal decision for both themselves and their families. Palliative care will always be available to terminal patients; however, not all patients will wish to wait and wonder. Nevertheless, some terminal patients will wish to take death into their own hands. People should be allowed to choose how they will die this would reduce the overall healthcare cost, decrease the emotional toll of the patients and their families, and allow there to be dignity within death.

A patient is suffering from lung cancer which has developed into its late stages and the patient's health is very critical. The patient suddenly requests to be given euthanasia or help assist suicide to end the suffering. But the physician denies the patient's request due to being illegal in the state. This violates the patient's right to determine if they want physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia. A well known philosopher, John Locke, once said, "Being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions." A person is given their natural rights since they were born and no one has any right to take them away. The patient has the right to request euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide if

The first argument for legalising euthanasia indicates to autonomy and fundamental right. Life is extremely precious and must be protected but not at any circumstances, like, a patient who is suffering from physical pain cause of terminal ill and wishing to eradicate from the endless pain. It is a fundamental right to everyone to make decision about those things are momentous to us, like, how we die (Short, 2016). Therefore, many supporters of euthanasia perceive that everyone has the right to control their body and life, and should be free to decide at what time, and in which manner they will die (Brooks,

Envision you have just been diagnosed with end stage cancer. You are only given a few months remaining to live. Your doctor informs you of the frightening and painful experiences that await you. As your health begins to deteriorate, your family no longer recognizes the person that you once were. Would you choose the path to suffering tremendous amounts of pain or would you want to die peacefully before that occurred? Euthanasia is the assisted death option for those who are diagnosed with an incurable disease. It is the permissive right of voluntary suicide, to prevent those that are terminally ill from suffering in vain. Some terminally ill patients suffer a great deal of pain, and do not wish to prolong their suffering. Euthanasia ensures that a person with a degenerative disease can end their life with the assistance of the medical community. It should be the choice of the individual to end their suffering, the pain that their family goes through, emotionally and financially.

If you were in a hospital lying on your deathbed, would you want to spend your last moments with your family, or your last moments with a strange doctor giving you an “end of life” shot? In this essay I will tell you why assisted suicide should not be legal. Assisted suicide can cause a lot of legal problems, and cause the family of the patient to not like or not trust their doctor. This is a current problem in the United States, along with many other countries such as The Netherlands and Switzerland. In my opinion, assisted suicide should not be legal.

Physical pain hurts; and sometimes it’s too much for us to handle. So to end the suffering, we do what will stop everything from hurting any longer. The idea of doing this is known as mercy killing, or euthanasia. When a patient is suffering from a painful, incurable disease, they can request to end their own life as the only resort to end the pain. Euthanasia is an illegal act, as it is considered assisted-suicide and murder. However, patients should have the right to control their own life, and even the right to end their life. Euthanasia is merciful as it ends a hopeless patient from pain and suffering, and also allows a quiet, peaceful death.

Those that are faced with the inevitable should be the ones to decide whether or not they want to sustain their own life because who else would know their mind better than themselves? The choice to die is filling with dignity, but being forced to stay alive again one’s own will strips patients of their humanity. The cost effectiveness of euthanasia and assisted suicide will be a huge stress relief for terminally ill patients while also benefiting those patients that are not terminally ill. Those against euthanasia and assisted suicide often claim that its legalization will lead to murder, but with protective policies in place that will not happen. Assisted suicide is legal in less than five countries and euthanasia is legal in fewer, but soon more and more counties are going to start considering legalization. It is important for the citizens of these countries to understand what will happen if euthanasia continues to be illegal and what will happen if it is legalized. It will affect them, their loved ones, and their fellow citizens. Taking a life is a serious matter and so is the autonomy of each person. A patient facing the end of their life should not be forced to face it in pain, rather they should be the ones to decide when they are ready to

Giving a person the right to personal autonomy allows them to make a choice based on their own circumstances and ethical beliefs. In cases where a patient is unable to make a decision due to the severity of his or her condition, they should not be viewed as living, but instead as dying. In other words, involuntary euthanasia is only speeding up an inevitable process, which in no regard should be compared to assisted suicide. Whether it is through personal autonomy, the choice of a trusted other, or the expert decision of a doctor, euthanasia serves a righteous and moral

Some of the most basic principles of the Hippocratic Oath, the oath most doctors are required to take, are being violated by pills or a lethal injection. Physician assisted suicide, or euthanasia, is a very controversial topic in today’s society. Some argue that people should be in control of their death, while others argue that euthanasia has many risks and side effects that are too great to ignore. Physician assisted suicide, or euthanasia, does not abide by the Hippocratic Oath nor basic societal principles therefore, it should not be legalized.

Euthanasia is used in many countries. One man was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. His son was by his side the whole time. The man told his son that if he was ever lying on a bed full of tubes and good to nobody, to tell them to let him go (Pratchett). Some would say that the man should be put out of his misery. I believe that the man should be helped until he dies. Some believe in promoting euthanasia because of the good it may bring to the suffering, but I, along with many others, believe that euthanasia is wrong.

When it comes to the topic of euthanasia, most of us will readily agree that it is a debatable topic. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of whether euthanasia should be given to end suffering. Weather some are convinced that there is better ways to go about pain such as hospice to provide them with more comfort, others maintain the idea that euthanasia should be given because people are free to choose how they want to die to end their suffering. My view is that euthanasia should not be legal because euthanasia is still a form of murder and ill people who are depressed tend to be capricious.

There is no black and white when a terminally ill patient is dealing with the thought of ending their life. The personal value that would be triggered in dealing with euthanasia, is my spiritual values. My religious upbringing reiterated that only God should determine when an individual’s life should end. However, as the years have passed, my undergraduate studies, and personal health experiences with family members my perspective has shifted to neutral. I now view each situation as an isolated issue. I am able to set aside my own values; and be empathic towards my client’s situation regardless of my values. The desire for a terminally ill patient to end their life is not a black and white decision. There is much

Life is held dear by many, and cherished by most. Many of us can take life for granted when we are healthy and happy. In the same token; one should consider a terminally ill patient, and where such a person may fit in; when it comes to their quality of life. When dealing with unforeseen special circumstance that present themselves, could logic and reasoning be set aside. One could argue that the element of life forms a different comparison; when applied to the average healthy person. This is where the controversy begins, and morals become touchy issues for most people. Should euthanasia be an alternative to end pain, and suffering in certain circumstances; or is euthanasia a mindless, selfish means to an end. Even worse; could euthanasia