Physician-assisted Suicide is Murder Essay -- Euthanasia Essay

Jeanette Hall once had the desire to die; a desire so strong, she even asked her doctor for help. Jeanette lives in Oregon, where assisted suicide is legal. On July 17, 2000, Jeanette was rushed to the Portland hospital only to be given a maximum time of survival: six months. She had been diagnosed with an inoperable form of colon cancer. Jeanette had a fear of losing her job, not being able to care for her loved ones, paying hospital bills, and suffering. It was her choice to die and was prepared to reject chemotherapy and radiation, but thankfully, Jeanette’s doctor, Dr. Kenneth Stevens, encouraged her to fight. Jeanette claims, â€Å"If he [Dr. Stevens] believed in physician-assisted suicide, I would not be here 13 years later to thank him, I would be dead† (Hall 1). Today, Jeanette is alive, happy, and healthy and speaks out against legalization, but because of the current legalization of physician-assisted suicide, she barely survived. Physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia are similar in the fact that they end lives of terminally ill patients, but they vary on where they are legalized. In 1997, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that there is no constitutionally protected right to physician-assisted suicide but left it to the individual states to regulate physician-assisted death (Ardelt 1). Although states still have the option to legalize assisted suicide, the federal government has made euthanasia illegal in every state. Euthanasia is only legal in Belgium and the Netherlands (Somerville 1). Euthanasia refers to the practice of ending the life of another person to relieve pain and suffering and is usually performed by a doctor. Legal in Montana, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington to terminal adults, physician-assisted su... ...s, 21 Jan. 2011. Web. 20 Feb. 2014. Rockett, Barbara. "Physician-assisted Suicide "in Direct Conflict" with Doctor's Role. "National Rights To Life News. National Rights to Life News, 1 Aug. 2012. Web. 10 Feb. 2014. Saad, Lydia. "U.S. Support for Euthanasia Hinges on How It's Described." U.S. Support for Euthanasia Hinges on How It's Described. Gallup, 29 May 2013. Web. 10 Feb. 2014. Somerville, Margaret. "What Would We Lose by Legalising Euthanasia?" ABC.net. American Proadcasting Corporation, 24 May 2013. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. "Sunday Dialogue: Choosing How We Die." The New York Times. The New York Times, 30 Mar. 2013. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. Swarte, Nikki B. "Effects of Euthanasia on the Bereaved Family and Friends: A Cross Sectional Study." Home. BMJ, 17 June 2003. Web. 10 Feb. 2014. "The Impact of Euthanasia on Society." Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Feb. 2014.