The topic of assisted suicide has always had controversy around it. The severity and how permanent this decision is makes it so people are advised to think about it thoroughly. The arguments made against it are based on religion and morals, but is it morally right to keep someone who is suffering alive? In no way should killing be the first answer to someone who is terminally ill, but all people should at least have it as a legal treatment option. That is why assisted suicide should be legal for anyone wanting to do it is because the choice should not reside around religious beliefs of government officials, forcing these terminally ill men and women to stay alive and suffer is inhumane, and because as citizens there are so many
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Patients have an amount of say in what kind of treatment they receive when diagnosed with their illnesses, but euthanasia is not to be considered in the same way. On a National Public Radio talk show they were quoted as saying “Advocates of assisted-suicide laws believe that mentally competent people who are suffering and have no chance of long-term survival, should have the right to die if and when they choose. If people have the right to refuse life-saving treatments, they argue, they should also have the freedom to choose to end their own lives.”("Debate: Should Physician-Assisted Suicide Be Legal?" NPR.) The right to refuse certain treatment options is valid and when patients refuse any treatment it is just the same as letting them kill themselves. Letting them agree to assisted suicide and choose when to have it done seems to be more of a morally correct process than letting them suffer and letting the illness take their lives. If a patient meets requirements that are set in place for this treatment they should be able to do so. In the state of Oregon where physician assisted suicide is legal the requirements for someone wanting to go through with it are as follows, “To be eligible, patients must wait 15 days after making an oral request to a doctor, and then make another oral and written request, followed by a 48-hour waiting period before medications are made available. How it was Legalized: Ballot initiative Number of Months Until Expected Death: 6 Minimum Age: 18 Number of Doctor Requests: 2 oral (at least 15 days apart); 1 written” (" 'Death With Dignity ' Laws by State) Since there are specific and well defined principles in place it in turn makes for more safe and
Patients have an amount of say in what kind of treatment they receive when diagnosed with their illnesses, but euthanasia is not to be considered in the same way. On a National Public Radio talk show they were quoted as saying “Advocates of assisted-suicide laws believe that mentally competent people who are suffering and have no chance of long-term survival, should have the right to die if and when they choose. If people have the right to refuse life-saving treatments, they argue, they should also have the freedom to choose to end their own lives.”("Debate: Should Physician-Assisted Suicide Be Legal?" NPR.) The right to refuse certain treatment options is valid and when patients refuse any treatment it is just the same as letting them kill themselves. Letting them agree to assisted suicide and choose when to have it done seems to be more of a morally correct process than letting them suffer and letting the illness take their lives. If a patient meets requirements that are set in place for this treatment they should be able to do so. In the state of Oregon where physician assisted suicide is legal the requirements for someone wanting to go through with it are as follows, “To be eligible, patients must wait 15 days after making an oral request to a doctor, and then make another oral and written request, followed by a 48-hour waiting period before medications are made available. How it was Legalized: Ballot initiative Number of Months Until Expected Death: 6 Minimum Age: 18 Number of Doctor Requests: 2 oral (at least 15 days apart); 1 written” (" 'Death With Dignity ' Laws by State) Since there are specific and well defined principles in place it in turn makes for more safe and