Should We Legalize Physician Assisted Suicide?

Physician-assisted suicide is legal in three of the fifty states in America: Oregon, Montana, and Washington. Getting approval for physician-assisted suicide in Oregon is a long process with many guidelines and restrictions. The patient must be terminally ill, with little hope for treatment and less than six months to live. It is required that they are a resident of Oregon, and at least 18 years of age. They must also be able to communicate their own wishes. Once the initial decision is made by the patient, he or she must make two oral requests for a prescription of lethal drugs to their attending physician, or the doctor that has initial care of that patient. These two requests should be made no less than 15 days apart, and a the patient must

Medical experts are concerned that, in the event of a widespread legality of assisted death, patients would lose confidence in their doctors (Quill 1).With the ability to, essentially, prescribe death, physicians would lose the trust their patients have in them. The American Medical Board says, “It is understandable, though tragic, that some patients in extreme duress-such as those suffering from a terminal, painful, debilitating illness-may come to decide that death is preferable to life. However, allowing physicians to participate in assisted suicide would cause more harm than good. Physician-assisted suicide is fundamentally incompatible with the physician’s role as healer, would be difficult or impossible to control, and would pose serious societal risks. (“Physician-assisted suicide – Right to Die” 2) The notion of physician-assisted suicide directly contradicts the foundation of medicine. It may also make physicians less determined to find an effective treatment. The Medical Board is concerned that, if assisted suicide becomes a widespread procedure, it would be a common answer for all terminal patients. However, even in Oregon, where physician-assisted suicide was legalized over a decade ago, the procedure accounts for only about 1 in 1,000 deaths in the state.

Works Cited

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Quill, Timothy E., and Jane Greenlaw. "Physician Assisted Death." Thehastingscenter.org. The
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Tyson, Peter. "The Hippocratic Oath Today." Pbs.org. NOVA, 27 Mar. 2001. Web. 2 Feb.