Should Assisted Suicide Be Legalized Essay

If they have to live a life of pain and suffering, with no way out other than even more physiological damage to the family and themselves, euthanasia should be legal. “Mr. Williams said "It's not a choice between life and death. It's a choice between different ways of dying."”. (Benjamin Preiss) Euthanasia is a heavy topic, loved ones dying by choice, and not by life. They don't put themselves in the shoes of the victim, they don't put themselves in the place of a mentally ill, or physiologically ill person, they see euthanasia as a bad thing, to take away the right to live and prosper.

People should be able to live their life to the longest. Physician-assisted suicide is a controversial topic spreading throughout the United States due to the ethical issues surrounding the topic. Physician-assisted suicide is legal in a few states and other states have passed bills to make sure this does not happen. Even though some say that all have a right to die, physician-assisted suicide should not be legal because it would be too psychologically damaging to all involved. Having a right to die is what causes assisted suicide so controversial.

Being alive suggests physical, mental, and emotional ability to complete desired tasks, whereas living implies having a pulse and breathing. When an individual is terminally ill or in a comatose state, is it moral to kill a suffering patient or to force them to continue in their suffering? Physician-assisted suicide should be legal in all states because it is inhumane to force a human being to suffer since they should have the right to determine their own fate.

I agree with the idea of assisted suicide, because if someone is suffering to the point that they can no longer care for themselves. They may feel that it is there time to go and that person should be able to make that decision. Although some believe that assisted suicide is wrong that should be left to the person that is going to die or the person

In the last decade, a controversial topic in the medical field in America is about Physician-assisted suicide. Many citizens are questioning where the line stands in whether or not this goes against medical ethos, and if it is a right for terminally ill patients. While there are benefits and deficits to either side, I believe everyone should have the right to choose to participate in assisted suicide when battling a terminal illness. While a handful of states in America that include, Oregon, Washington, California, Colorado, Vermont, and with court decision, Montana have already passed the Death with Dignity Act, it is still not easily accessed and there are a lot of parameters regarding the Act ("Death with Dignity"). In Oregon you have to meet certain criteria.

Physician assisted suicide, although legal in some states, should remain illegal because it goes against religious and moral beliefs. “In physician assisted suicide, the physician provides the necessary means or information and the patient performs the act” (Endlink). Supporters of assisted-suicide laws believe that mentally competent people who are in misery and have no chance of long-term survival, should have the right to die if and when they choose. I agree that people should have the right to refuse life-saving treatments, written in the patient bill of rights.

The first of many reasons that physician assisted suicide should be legalized across the whole nation is the fact that it is an option that is covered by many safeguards that ensure that the patients who receive the deadly prescription are those who are, in fact, terminally ill. One such example of these safeguards comes from the Oregon Death With Dignity Act which states: “Requests for [Death With Dignity Act] drugs must be confirmed by two witnesses and approved by two doctors. The patient must not be mentally ill. And most important of all, both doctors must agree that the patient has no more that six months to live.” (Drum).

“Legislation that allows people to end their lives automatically creates incentives to seek death as a cost-saving option. The elderly and infirm are seen as burdens and can easily be disposed of. Suicide becomes the easy way out.” (Ben Broussard) Most of the time physicians are against the idea of physician assisted suicide because it goes against their job description and personal beliefs.

After researching both sides of the argument, it is clear that the benefits of physician-assisted suicide outweigh the disadvantages. The benefits of ending a patient’s pain and suffering, minimizing the emotional and financial effects on families, and preserving the right for patients to decide their own fate, supports the legalization of physician-assisted suicide.

A survey of physicians conducted by the Canadian Medical Association found that "a significant proportion of respondents reported that they had been asked for assistance in dying by patients whose primary motivation appeared to be loneliness, lack of social support, or perceived burden on others" (Downar et al., 2017). This means that if physician-assisted suicide is legalized, at-risk people could be vulnerable to coercion or abuse. Opponents say allowing doctors to assist in suicide would undermine their role as healers and could lead to unwanted or unnecessary deaths, or a loss of respect for human life. The American Psychological Association echoes these concerns and highlights the major risks associated with such decisions. Among those concerns are, “Depression causing a desire for death,” “A loss of autonomy and function causing a desire for control,” and “worries about future pain” (Weir).

Six states and the District of Columbia have “Death with Dignity” laws that allow physicians to prescribe lethal medicine to mentally competent adults with terminal conditions. Individuals against these laws believe that it allows for too many unintended consequences, some of these being possible elder abuse and illegal distribution of the lethal medicine used to carry out assisted suicide. On the other hand, supporters of this movement advocate that people who are terminally ill deserve to die on their own terms, instead of dying in immense pain from their condition. These vastly different opinions have me wondering: should terminally ill patients be able to take part in physician-assisted

Many would say that those reason a lone are enough to make them support Assisted Suicide. What they are not thinking about though is the cost it has on their family and friends. Family’s get torn apart through things like car crashes, fires, and other disasters that accidently take the life’s of the ones they love, imagine if they knew that it was there family members choice to die. They would be devastated. Especially if they thought it was because of being a financial burden.

Patients have the right to the kind of treatment they want. 3) Conclusion a) Physician assisted suicide can help treat the terminally ill how they would like to be treated. b) The long history of assisted suicide speaks for itself in the matter of if it should be legal or

The medical field is filled with opportunities and procedures that are used to help improve a patient’s standard of living and allow them to be as comfortable as possible. Physician assisted suicide (PAS) is a method, if permitted by the government, that can be employed by physicians across the world as a way to ease a patient’s pain and suffering when all else fails. PAS is, “The voluntary termination of one's own life by administration of a lethal substance with the direct or indirect assistance of a physician.”-Medicinenet.com. This procedure would be the patient’s decision and would allow the patient to end their lives in a more peaceful and comfortable way, rather than suffering until the illness takes over completely. Physician assisted suicide should be permitted by the government because it allows patients to end their suffering and to pass with dignity, save their families and the hospital money, and it allows doctors to preserve vital organs to save

In my opinion, I think assisted suicide and euthanasia should not be legal. What causes Dr. Kevorkian and I to have differentiating opinions on this matter I believe is our religious faith. Dr. Kevorkian as a non-religious man might have the view that one lives life and then gets buried under the ground soil like everyone else, which might be a reason as to why he thinks if someone wants to die there’s nothing wrong with helping them, instead you are kind of doing them a favour. Also, possible PTSD from all the deaths he witnessed when he did his service in Korea could account to his mere significance towards human life. On the other hand, not stating that this is the correct side since no one will ever know, I believe that only God should decide when it is someone