The Right to Die: Euthanasia

To many people, it would seem that dying would be the most basic and fundamental right, more elementary than any constitutional freedom. However, this is not the case, as there is a great deal of controversy surrounding physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. Presently, the federal government has left each state to decide whether or not they agree with these methods. This is unfortunate since these processes should not only be prerogatives, but they also offer certain benefits. It would allow for organ donation which would help so many other people who may not survive without a transplant. Also, most people know that terminal illnesses can force patients to endure a great deal of pain, and the prices of health care to treat that pain can be enormous. Both of these things are corrigible by euthanization processes. Above all, the government should be able realize that death is a freedom they have no right to deny any human being under any circumstances. For these reasons, physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia should be legalized on a federal level because of the advantages they constitute: such as the salvaging of organs, lower healthcare costs, and cessation of pain. Furthermore, individuals have a right to die and should be able to depart with dignity and peace.
As previously stated, a primary benefit of these procedures is that the patient may choose to donate their organs. There are few medical circumstances that allow a patient to donate their organs, but this is one of them. Typically, only people who are brain dead or in a vegetative state can donate. If patients decide to live for as long as possible, then there could be much organ atrophy. In this instance, the organs may be unusable and will have therefore gone ...

... middle of paper ...

...omfortable with ideas of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. Perhaps, someday the federal government will legalize these approaches, and the public will look at back and see these times as cruel and inhumane. These procedures might eventually seem as natural as any other treatment an individual would receive. Often times people do not get to choose how they die, but on the singular occasions in which they do, there should be an option for a merciful death. Though it may be against their oath, doctors should be able to assist patients that have life clinging to them like a disease itself. Essentially, the government has forced those with terminal illnesses to waste away when they would much prefer death. The question the officials in Washington D.C. need to ask themselves is, “Are we allowing doctors to help these patients, or are we cruelly delaying death?”