Late last year, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced a deal to legalize assisted suicide for terminally ill patients.
The so-called “Medical Aid in Dying Act” is supposed to make it possible for patients expected to die within six months to request a prescription for lethal drugs.
Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a similar assisted suicide law in December as well.
Assisted suicide fundamentally changes the doctor-patient relationship from healing to killing.
The Hippocratic Oath promises to “first, do no harm.” Prescribing lethal drugs violates that sacred trust. Doctors should heal — not kill.
Under New York’s law, medical professionals will help people end their lives or refer refer them to doctors who will. This violates the conscience rights of healthcare workers who entered medicine to save lives, not end them.
Studies show assisted suicide corrupts medical judgment. Doctors may spend less time exploring treatment options and pain management when death becomes a “medical option.”
In some countries, assisted suicide and euthanasia are driving palliative care specialists to quit. That hurts everyone.
Being pro-life means respecting innocent human life from conception until natural death. We do not eliminate suffering by eliminating people who are suffering. There is nothing “compassionate” about that.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.
Related posts:
Lawmaker Withdraws Bill Concerning Acts of Negligence by Healthcare Professionals
Less Than 1% of Assisted-Suicide Patients in Oregon Received a Psychiatric Evaluation Last Year
Assisted Suicide’s Slippery Slope to Broader Killing
Researchers Say People With Eating Disorders are Dying from Assisted Suicide