Beyond Terminal Illness. The Widening Scope of Physician-Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia in the US.

Please find Dr. Komrad's explanatory note to colleagues below.

Physician-assisted suicide (PAS)—commonly but misleadingly called “medical aid in dying”1—is now legal in 11 jurisdictions in the US. PAS remains an area of great controversy among physicians, medical ethicists, and various patient advocacy groups, as evidenced by numerous opinion pieces in Psychiatric Times.2,3 While we recognize that individuals of good conscience may differ on the ethics of PAS, we have consistently maintained—as the American Medical Association has opined—that4:

Physician-assisted suicide is fundamentally incompatible with the physician’s role as healer, would be difficult or impossible to control, and would pose serious societal risks.

Second Thoughts Massachusetts Protest Gains Important News Coverage

Second Thoughts Massachusetts led a peaceful counter demonstration at a gathering of assisted suicide proponents held at the Massachusetts State House on Wednesday, June 5th.

Seated: John Kelly, Randi Shea, Brian Shea. Standing: Chip Guiney, Glacier Gray, Ashlinn Parnell

In addition to those featured in the photo above, others who participated included Ian McIntosh and Jessica Rodgers of the Patients Rights Action Fund, Harry Weissman, Director of Advocacy for Disability Policy Consortium, as well as Gabriell Paye, Jon Ball, John Robinson and Dr. Rich Florentine.

The State House News Service (SHNS) provided unusually balanced coverage of the disability led demonstration against the assisted suicide bill currently before the Massachusetts legislature.

Assisted Suicide & Euthanasia Highlights

1.  Alex Shadenberg, Head of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition (pictured): "With the legalization of euthanasia throughout Canada, Canadian life spans have dropped for three straight years, from 2019 to 2022." https://www.choiceillusion.org/2024/05/canadas-life-span-drop.html

2.  Margaret Dore, “In Oregon, Other Suicides Have Increased with the Legalization of Assisted Suicide.” The financial cost is “enormous.” https://www.choiceillusion.org/2017/08/in-oregon-other-suicides-have-increased.html

3.  Diane Coleman, “A Short History of Assisted Suicide; Is Canadian Style Assisted Suicide/Euthanasia Coming to California?,” https://www.choiceillusion.org/2024/03/a-short-history-of-assisted-suicide-is.html

New York Bar Association and Medical Society Ignore Dangers of Legalized Assisted Suicide

By Lisa Blumberg (author pictured here).

The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) adopted a resolution in 2023 that supports the provisions of the assisted suicide bill before the legislature. This position is based on a report by its Task Force on Medical Aid in Dying. The report is extensive but seems more of defense of assisted suicide rather than a balanced inquiry into the myriad issues raised by its legalization.

Alex Schadenberg Regarding Canada & the United States, including Good News

Dear Friends: ... 

Sylvie Berube (BQ) MP sponsored Bill C-390, a bill that would extend Canada’s law by allowing euthanasia approvals by advanced request. The bill amends the federal euthanasia law by adding to sections of the law the words: “or an applicable provincial framework.” Last year, the Québec government passed Bill 11, which expanded the Québec law by (among other things) allowing euthanasia by advanced request. Bill C-390, if passed, would amend Canada’s euthanasia law by changing the federal law based on amendments to provincial laws. In other words, Québec could legislate federally.

Follow up by Mark Komrad MD (pictured below)

Colleagues,

[Theo Boer, Professor of Health Care Ethics in the Netherlands] spoke last Friday. Many asked that I send the link to the lecture when available. Here it is: https://doctorssayno.net/webinars/

[Professor Boer] spoke about the decades of experience with euthanasia in that country and how it has affected and changed some fundamental cultural values there regarding life, death, and disability.  He document[ed] how it grew vastly beyond the initial parameters. 

This was a very worthwhile talk by Dr. Boer who was  involved in the early days of  the medical euthanasia's roll out in the Netherlands. He was initially supportive, but saw it get quite out of hand. So he became an opponent, and a Cassandra, warning other countries to not go down that path. 

Actress and Activist Liz Carr Creates “Blistering” Documentary On Assisted Suicide

By Diane Coleman, Not Dead Yet.  Original publication 05/16/24.

Liz Carr’s newest groundbreaking documentary on assisted suicide is a in-depth exploration of the emotions and societal pressures that lie at the heart of disability opposition to a public policy that threatens ours lives. The Guardian called it “blistering.” Her gripping and personal narrative, a must-see tour-de-force is available HERE for now. ...

In 2013, Liz Carr created a two part BBC documentary called “When Assisted Suicide Is Legal” about what she called her Euthanasia Road Trip in Europe, Oregon and Washington State. NDY covered Part 1 and Part 2 with excerpts and commentary in our blog, and the audio documentary is still live online:

Webinar Regarding Forty Years of the Dutch Euthanasia Experience (May 24/25 2024)

Featured Speaker Professor Theo Boer, pictured below.

Introductory comments by Mark Komrad, MD, below.

Please click HERE to join: Password: 089934, check your time zones listed below.

* * *

Dr. Komrad:

The international DOCTORS SAY NO organization is opposed to considering assisted suicide and euthanasia as medical procedures. I'm on the board and we sponsor a series of zoom lectures from physicians in several countries. Now, on May 24 [2024] we will be hearing from celebrated Dutch ethicist Theo Boer. 

Canada: Deep Convictions and Deep Pockets are Needed to Fight the MAID Lobby

By Gabrielle Peters (article excerpt).

“On the question of religious hospitals, despite being a lesbian couple, Patricia and I would tolerate life-size crucifixes in the treatment room if it meant being safe from MAID.” ~ Catherine Frazee,  (pictured here).* 

Disabled people often talk about being made invisible. This feeling is particularly striking around issues that are specific to us like MAID, "Medical Assistance in Dying." The lobbyists and proponents for Canada’s MAID regime routinely mischaracterize or, more often, omit mention of disabled people or our reasons for opposition entirely.

New Hampshire Senate Kills Bill

https://www.concordmonitor.com/NH-Senate-kills-MAID-55151269

After months of intense public debate, with Granite Staters on both sides of the legislation that would allow medical aid in dying [meaning assisted suicide, physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia], packing the room at every public hearing, the Senate voted on Thursday to kill the bill  [HB 1283] ....

The bill, which was struck down in the senate with a vote of 17-7 and referred to an interim study, proposed granting individuals aged 18 and above, diagnosed with a terminal illness and a prognosis of six months or less, and having sound mental capacity, the option to end their lives without suffering from the disease. ...

From the time the bill was introduced, legislators said they were flooded with testimonies both in favor of and against it. According to the state website, 658 individuals voiced their support, while 1,125 testified against it...

Canada's Life Span Drop

By Alex Schadenberg

Life expectancy for Canadians has dropped for at least three straight years from 2019 to 2022.

The drop in life expectancy also occurred in the US during Covid, but life expectancy rebounded in the US in 2022, whereas in Canada life expectancy has remained a year lower.

Based on the sheer number of euthanasia deaths in Canada, and the fact that Canadians are not required to be terminally ill in order to be killed by euthanasia, deaths by euthanasia have strongly affected Canada’s death rate resulting in the average Canadian dying one year earlier than in 2019.

Declaration of Jeanette Hall 2024

Reformatted for this site

I, JEANETTE HALL (pictured with her son), declare as follows:

1.    I live in Oregon where assisted suicide is legal. Our law was enacted in 1997 via a ballot measure that I voted for.

2. In 2000, I was diagnosed with cancer and told that I had 6 months to a year to live. I knew that our law had passed, but I didn’t know exactly how to go about doing it. I tried to ask my doctor, Kenneth Stevens MD, but he didn’t really answer me. In hindsight, he was stalling me.

3.    I did not want to suffer. I wanted to do our law and I wanted Dr. Stevens to help me. Instead, he encouraged me to not give up and ultimately I decided to fight the cancer. I have both chemotherapy and radiation. I am so happy to be alive!

Not Dead Yet: New Rule Prohibits Discrimination in Suicide Prevention Services

By Diane Coleman (pictured here).

May 3, 2024

Last November, Not Dead Yet (NDY) filed a Public Comment on HHS/OCR Proposed Section 504 Healthcare Regulations. This week, the Department of Health and Human Services announced the finalization of the new regulation prohibiting disability discrimination in healthcare under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

While the primary focus of our public comment was the denial of life-sustaining healthcare treatment based on negative disability biases, we mentioned the issue of equality in suicide prevention as well, for example, here:

As HHS has indicated in its discussion of the proposed rule, biases about the impact disabilities have on “quality of life” are endemic among medical professionals. One manifestation of these discriminatory attitudes is the failure to treat suicidal depression in people with disabilities, including older individuals, although other people with suicide ideation are routinely offered suicide prevention services.

Off Topic: Climate Change Prediction Bust Leaves Park Scrambling To Change Signs

 By Amanda Prestigiacomo, Jan 9, 2020   DailyWire.com

In another global warming or climate change prediction gone awry, Glacier National Park is scrambling to change signs warning visitors about glaciers being melted by 2020.

The signs were originally placed in the Montana park more than a decade ago, in accordance with predictions made by the U.S. Geological Survey.

According to Glacier National Park spokeswoman Gina Kurzmen, the park was made aware of the bunk prediction about the glaciers in 2017, “but tight maintenance budgets made it impossible for the park to immediately change the signs,” CNN reported Wednesday.

Some placards have been changed at St. Mary Visitor Center, but others throughout the park have not.

Off Topic: Montana Public Service Commission Lacks Jurisdiction Over Proposed Climate Change Petition

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

Consideration of the pending climate change petition is outside of the jurisdiction of the PSC, set forth here:  https://psc.mt.gov/About-Us/What-We-Do 

In the event that providing such jurisdiction would be advisable, it would be up to the Montana Legislature to enact appropriate legislation regarding same.

 

Without such legislation, addressing the pending climate change petition is ultra vires, meaning beyond the scope of the PSC's scope of authority.

 

The Commission has no authority to go forward.

 

Going forward is a waste of our taxpayer dollars.