Colorado passes medical aid in dying ("Right to Die"), joining five other states

[mountaineer]

Colorado passes medical aid in dying, joining five other states
By Jennifer Brown
PUBLISHED: November 8, 2016 at 12:00 pm | UPDATED: November 9, 2016 at 1:34 am
Denver Post

Colorado passed a medical aid in dying measure Tuesday that will allow adults suffering from terminal illness to take life-ending, doctor-prescribed sleeping medication.

The ballot initiative passed overwhelmingly, by a two-thirds, one-third split, according to unofficial returns. Supporters claimed victory an hour after polls closed in Colorado.

“Today is bittersweet for our family,” said Melissa Hollis Brenkert, who watched her sister die painfully from a brain tumor. “Passage of Prop 106 means that Coloradans will now have options when facing pain and suffering at the end of their lives.”

Opponents, though, vowed to keep fighting to protect the elderly and people with disabilities, who they said are the law’s targets. “We are deeply disappointed and concerned about Colorado legalizing doctor-assisted suicide,” said Jeff Hunt, vice president of public policy for Colorado Christian University. “The fight is not over.”

Proposition 106, the “End of Life Options” measure, models Oregon’s “Death with Dignity” law, passed 22 years ago. With 63 percent of votes counted, the initiative had 1,279,077 votes, or 65.3 percent, compared with 678,936 or 34.6 percent, against.

Two physicians would have to agree the person is mentally competent and has fewer than six months to live, and the person choosing to die would have to self-administer the dosage of secobarbital, historically used in low doses as a sleeping pill. People with dementia or Alzheimer’s would not be eligible for the prescription.   ...

Rest of story

[Suppressed]

So good.

Freedom and compassion aren't dead in all of America.

[dfwgator]

It's a thin line between "Right to Die" and "Duty to Die".

[guitar4jesus]

It's a thin line between "Right to Die" and "Duty to Die".

Aye.

[mountaineer]

It's a thin line between "Right to Die" and "Duty to Die".

Exactly,  thus the creation or threat of death panels.

[Taxcontrol]

As a Colorado voter who opposed this measure, I am very disappointed in my fellow voters.  I personally believe that someone who commits suicide is being very selfish and doing an immoral act.  However, someone who is suffering DOES NOT NEED a doctor to prescribe medications to assist in their suicide.  A bottle of nitrogen gas, a plastic tube and a bag to cover there head is all they need to kill themselves.  No medical help needed.

A doctor should not be encouraged to violate their oath to first do no harm.  Nor should the moral burden of suicide be expanded to cover others.

[Suppressed]

I personally believe that someone who commits suicide is being very selfish and doing an immoral act.

Yes, nearly as selfish as a person who expects another person to live against his will, for the person's own selfish pleasure.  That is what I'd call immoral.

However, someone who is suffering DOES NOT NEED a doctor to prescribe medications to assist in their suicide.  A bottle of nitrogen gas, a plastic tube and a bag to cover there head is all they need to kill themselves.  No medical help needed.

When one checks into a hospital or is taken there unconscious,  those items are usually taken out of one's posession.

And only a little bit of research would reveal that in real-world conditions, plastic bag sans prescription assistance is failure-prone.  Making someone a vegetable might relieve them of their suffering, but it's hardly an ideal solution.

[geronl]

You are a burden, so we've decided to starve you to death because you refuse to die on your own,


Your kids are your death panels

[mountaineer]

Some comments on the law from the Alliance Defending Freedom. Excerpt:

...  Here are two additional reasons that I take to be at the center of the opposition to physician-prescribed death:

    Physicians should never kill their patients. The proper role of physicians is to heal and help, not to inflict harm or end a life.

    The power dynamic in many of these cases gives power to the affluent companies in charge of insurance and medication, potentially hindering agency among those who may feel as though they have no choice in the matter. Put another way: If you are suffering from depression or some sort of terminal disease, and a physician recommends suicide instead of healthcare or help, you may not feel as though you have any viable option.

The latter is connected to what the author identifies as the loosening of "the guidelines for who can request assisted suicide," but the author misses the coercive reality that often accompanies physician-prescribed death.

These concerns are certainly true in Colorado, where physicians are not required to refer patients to mental health specialists to determine the influence of conditions like depression.

Laws that give physicians a license to kill are a real danger. It is a shame that Colorado has approved this law.

[Gefn]

Bookmark.

Bump.