Preview

Physician Assisted Suicide: the Moral Debate

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
848 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Physician Assisted Suicide: the Moral Debate
Physician-assisted Suicide: The Moral Debate Axia College of University of Phoenix Physician-assisted suicide is the process of killing oneself with the assistance from a physician that writes a lethal prescription for a medication to be administered in the presence of another health professional and is currently legal in only three states, Oregon, Washington and Montana. There are certain qualifications that one must meet to qualify for the service Oregon has named the “Death with Dignity Act”; however, more often than not these stipulations are not being satisfied sufficiently and instead the physician is granting requests without paying mind to the depression the patient may be suffering from. Health insurance companies in these statesare also taking this bill that is supposed to empower patients to choose their own fate and turning it into a reason to exclude coverage for the drugs needed to prolong their lives. Instead of covering thousands of dollars worth of chemotherapy or other treatments, the insurance company would rather take the cheaper way out and offer physician assisted suicide. While it allows the terminally ill to take control of their own fate, physician-assisted suicide should be illegal as it allows outside sources to make deciding factors on the value of human life. Figure 1 The number of participating prescribing physicians in Oregon between 2000 and 2007 {draw:frame} Figure 2 Lethal prescriptions written versus the amount of resulting deaths between 1998 and 2007. {draw:frame} Allowing Physician-assistedsuicide may prompt families, loved ones and medical professionals to give up hope too soon. As with most things in the medical field, anything can happen. Miracles happen every day. These miracles can include a person becoming capable of living longer than expected and even being cured of the disease that was once thought to be terminal. Instead of trying to find cures for diseases or ways to prolong life,


References: Stevens, Jr. M.D.FACR, Kenneth R., Emotional and Psychological Effects of Physician-Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia on Participating Physicians, Volume 21 Issues in Law & Med. 187 (2006). "Several Healthcare Provider Groups Announce Refusal to Participate: Physician-Assisted Suicide Is Legalized in Washington State." National Right to Life News 35.11-12 (Nov 2008): Page 12. General OneFile. Gale. Apollo Library. 10 Mar. 2009 http://find.galegroup.com/ips/start.do?prodId=IPS. Hendin, Herbert, and Kathleen Foley. "Physician-assisted suicide in Oregon: a medical perspective." Issues in Law & Medicine 24.2 (Fall 2008): 121(25). General OneFile. Gale. Apollo Library. 12 Mar. 2009 http://find.galegroup.com/ips/start.do?prodId=IPS. Engber, Daniel. “How Does Assisted Suicide Work? A guide to “Death With Dignity” in Oregon.” Paragraph 5. (Oct. 6, 2005). 10 Mar. 2009 http://www.slate.com/id/2127629 James, Susan D. “Death Drugs Cause Uproar in Oregon. Terminally Ill Denied Drugs For Life, But Can Opt For Suicide.” Paragraph 4. (Aug. 6, 2008). 12 Mar. 2009 < http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=5517492> Stevens, Jr., M.D., Kenneth R. “Oregon Rationing Cancer Treatment but Offering Assisted Suicide to Cancer Patients Paying to Die but not to Live.” Paragraph 5. (June 6, 2008). 11 Mar. 2009

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    ENG 111 Final Paper

    • 3005 Words
    • 9 Pages

    In today 's society one of the most controversial issues is physician-assisted suicide for the terminally ill. Many feel as though it is wrong, regardless of their health condition to ask their health care provider to end their life. Others feel it is their right to be able to choose how and when they die. For those who believe physician-assisted suicide should be their choice, they feel it should be legal because: they don 't want to go through the suffering caused by the life-threatening illness, they fear the loss of their independence, becoming a burden to their family and friends, and the fear of dying alone.…

    • 3005 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In this article, William Toffler, a professor at Oregon Health & Science University and licensed physician, claims that legalizing assisted suicide in his state has had a negative effect on the medical profession. The author presents the reader with accounts of patients considering assisted suicide, as well as statistics surrounding the practice and legality. He supports his thesis by presenting the fears patients have when seeking medical care in a pro-suicide state. He also cites the laws put into effect that allows a doctor not to disclose how a patient died and the unreliability in knowing exactly how long a patient is expected to live; therefore the state is not giving the public access to certain data surrounding the issue. He goes on…

    • 228 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    When we think about the idea of physician- assisted suicide, we most likely feel as though that the act itself should be considered murder. During 1997, The President at the time Bill Clinton signed into regulations “The assisted suicide funding restriction act”. The regulation omitted the use of federal monies to pay for physician assisted suicide, as well as euthanasia, and also mercy killings in the United States. According to the New England Journal of Medicine Physician assisted suicide is now currently legal in three states, they are Oregon, Washington,…

    • 631 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Euthanasia, often referred to as mercy killing, easy death, or right to die, generates strong feelings both pro and con as proponents of each side passionately argue their ideological stance. The broader concept is often missed with the attention placed on the narrow view of physician-assisted suicide. Many have little or no tolerance or understanding of the patient’s position feeling there is no quality of life in their present circumstance or condition and as such, they have a personal choice or entitlement to end their life or have someone else assist them in ending it in order to cease their own personal, unbearable, suffering and/or pain. Currently, this type of practice within these United States is deemed unacceptable and unlawful except within the states of Oregon, Washington, and Montana (Marker,…

    • 1077 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Best Essays

    Bowden, Thomas A. "Physician-Assisted Suicide Is a Moral Right." Problems with Death. Ed. David A. Becker. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Assisted Suicide Is a Moral Right." San Francisco Examiner 6 Oct. 2005. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.…

    • 321 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Rapid and dramatic developments in medicine and technology have given us the power to save more lives than was ever possible in the past. Medicine has put at our disposal the means to cure or to reduce the suffering of people afflicted with diseases that were once fatal or painful. At the same time, however, medical technology has given us the power to sustain the lives (or, some would say, prolong the deaths) of patients whose physical and mental capabilities cannot be restored, whose degenerating conditions cannot be reversed, and whose pain cannot be eliminated. As medicine struggles to pull more and more people away from the edge of death, the plea that tortured, deteriorated lives be mercifully ended grows louder and more frequent. Californians are now being asked to support an initiative, entitled the Humane and Dignified Death Act, that would allow a physician to end the life of a terminally ill patient upon the request of the patient, pursuant to properly executed legal documents. Under present law, suicide is not a crime, but assisting in suicide is. Whether or not we as a society should pass laws sanctioning "assisted suicide" has generated intense moral controversy.…

    • 877 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Physician-assisted suicide is the intentional end of one's own life by the organization of a deadly substance with the immediate or backhanded help of a doctor. Some people support Physician Assisted suicide while others do not. In order, to develop a better understanding of this trending issue, we must first look at different perspectives and viewpoints while approaching the topic. These viewpoints are moral, practical, and legal.…

    • 697 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Should physicians be granted the power to intentionally end the lives of their patients? Recent proposals to legalize physician-assisted suicide have raised this question and triggered intense legal, medical and social debate. For some individuals, the debate is fueled by their fear that medical technology may someday keep them alive past the time of natural death. However, this concern is unfounded for mentally competent adults who have a legal right to refuse or stop any medical treatment. It is also important to recognize that today's health care climate lends itself more to undertreatment than overtreatment.…

    • 289 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Best Essays

    Staff, Statesman Journal. "Oregon 's Law." Statesman Journal 13 Apr. 2005, sec. Page One: 2a. Access World News. Temple University, Philadelphia. 6 June 2008. Keyword: Death with Dignity Act and Physician Assisted Suicide.…

    • 1705 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Physician-assisted suicide is currently a hotly debate issue within the United States government. Physician-assisted suicide is defined as when “a physician assists a patient in dying by writing a prescription for a legal dose of a drug that the patient self-administers.” (Behuniak & Svenson, 2003). Physician-assisted suicide is illegal on a federal level, however; the practice has been legalized within 6 states: California, Colorado, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and Montana (Author, 2017). The practice of physician-assisted suicide is flawed in several aspects. Firstly, it places people of a lower socioeconomic class and people that suffer from mental illnesses at a greater risk. Secondly, physician-assisted suicide degrades the sanctity of life. Lastly, physician-assisted suicide is exploited by insurance companies as a way to cut costs, because medication for a lethal-dose prescription costs less money than the care of a patient over several months or years. Physician-assisted suicide is a…

    • 1132 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Dr. Ann Marie Chiasson believes that Physician Assisted Suicide is inhumane, because it goes against the Hippocratic oath. David Orentlicher created a documentary covering the dark side of Physician Assisted Suicide, and it also showed the lack of responsibility some doctors have over their patients. Finally, Ben Mattlin a terminally ill patient himself claimed that any barriers eliminated would make life scary for him, because they could have easily terminated his life, because of his condition. Physician-Assisted Suicide needs to be criminalized, because it blurs the lines between the doctor and patient relationship, not all patients are mentally competent to make their own decisions, and it violates the Hippocratic oath. The American Medical Association’s morals are where they need to be, but the government needs to remove the state’s right to decide if Physician Assisted Suicide should be allowed. The government needs to outlaw it once and for all. Physician Assisted Suicide is not right, or will it ever…

    • 1441 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Oregon Public Health Division.(2011, March) Oregon’s Death With Dignity Act: Thriteen Years. CD Summary, Volume 60, Number 6. Retrieved May 29, 2011, from Oregon.gov…

    • 1087 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    This drew a substantial amount of attention not only to Brittany but also to the discussion of assisted suicide. That same year Brittany consciously made the decision to move to Oregon, where Death with Dignity Act had been established in 1994. This story brings to light many important parts of the legalization of Physician-Assisted Suicide. First one being, the financial burden that comes with being terminally ill and living in a state without assisted suicide. Although Brittany and her family had the financial means to move across the country to ensure Brittany had full control over the way she chose to die, many others aren’t that lucky. Having not only the financial resources along with a proper support system isn’t always the case for some people seeking assisted suicide. The possibility of the average person being able to pick up their life along with their families to move across the country is very uncommon. Second importance in the discussion of the legalization of Physician-Assisted Suicide is the suffering that comes along with terminal…

    • 1552 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Legalizing assisted suicide gives an option to patients who have a terminal illness where they can end their lives painlessly instead of living a short life in pain or medicated with strong pain killer. Legalizing assisted suicide doesn’t mean the patients will use the prescriptions the doctor give them to end their life, "Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Harry Chen said he expects doctors to write between 10 and 20 lethal prescriptions a year, with a smaller number of patients actually using the drugs" (Ring). Legalizing assisted suicide gives the option to people who are sick a way out, but it doesn't mean they have to use the option. Oregon has had physician assisted suicide legalized for 19 years where, "In the last 17 years in Oregon, doctors have written 1,173 prescriptions. Of these, 752 patients have used the medication to bring about their deaths and 421 have chosen not to use it, said Patricia A. Gonzalez-Portillo of Compassion & Choices" (McGreevy). Little more than half of the statics from Compassion and Choices show that the patients took the prescription. Compassion and Choices is an organization that fights for patient’s rights. The patients that did end their lives suffered from terminal illness from cancer to Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) where most the patients were suffering from pain or losing their abilities to care for themselves and were put in a nursing home or hospice. Doctors give people who get sick medication, but when people are unable to beat their disease there’s not much a doctor can do besides offer hospice. Some patients would rather die than be placed in hospice care, "The "big picture" here is that currently, some human beings are being left to suffer long, painful deaths. Some would prefer to stop living - and would gladly do…

    • 715 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    References: Battin, M. (2007). Legal physician-assisted dying in Oregon and the Netherlands: evidence concerning the impact on patients in “vulnerable” groups. Journal of Medical Ethics, 33(10), 591-597. Retrieved from http://jme.bmj.com/search?fulltext=euthanasia in oregon&submit=yes&x=0&y=0…

    • 1048 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays