DEATH WITH DIGNITY
The Case for Legalizing Physician-Assisted Dying and Euthanasia
By Robert Orfali
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- Over 71% of Hawaii voters support it (Source: 2004 poll).
- Recommended for Hawaii by Governor Cayetano's Blue Ribbon Panel.
- Over 59.3% of U.S. physicians support it (Source: 2010 poll of 10,000
U.S. physicians by Medscape).
- Based on 13 years of data from Oregon and 30 years from the Netherlands, no credible claim can be made that physician-assisted dying weakens hospice and palliative care, threatens people with disabilities, or discriminates against elders, minorities, or vulnerable populations. There are no slippery slopes to report. At this point, only the arguments based on religious faith remain intact.
- Oregon demonstrates that physician-assisted dying complements hospice. By providing both, Oregon now has the best palliative-care system in America. This includes number of deaths occurring at home, better use of pain medication, number of patient referrals to hospice care, and improved quality of end-of-life care.
- Physician-assisted dying is not seen as suicide by the state of Oregon. The death certificate shows a natural death.
- After carefully reviewing the Oregon record, these major medical organizations are now in support: the American Medical Women's Association. (AMWA), the American Medical Student Association (AMSA), the American College of Legal Medicine (ACLM), and the American Public Health Association (APHA). In 2007, the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) shifted its stand from oppositional to neutral.