Physician assisted suicide is the process by which a physician provides information and medication to a terminally ill patient, and the patient performs the act. This is distinct from euthanasia, where the doctor or another party performs the act. According to a study performed by EndLink, a program developed through the National Cancer Institute, more than 50 percent of doctors have received a request for some type of physician assisted suicide.
State Laws
In 1997, Oregon became the first state to legalize physician assisted suicide through the Oregon Death with Dignity Act. The Death with Dignity Act allows for terminally ill patients with a life expectancy of less than six months to be eligible for physician assisted suicide. The act, which is controversial, contains several requirements that must be met in order to protect patients, as well as doctors.
Physician assisted suicide still is illegal in most states either through statute or common law.
Federal Law
In 1997, the United State’s Supreme Court stated there was no Constitutional right to suicide, and upheld decisions in New York and Washington making physician assisted suicide illegal. Later, the Court affirmed it was within the individual state’s discretion whether to legalize the act when it upheld Oregon’s law.
After the enactment of the Oregon law, the U.S. Attorney General’s Office issued the Ashcroft Directive stating that prescribing federally controlled medication for use in physician assisted suicide violated the Controlled Substances Act. More specifically, the directive stated that dispensing controlled substances for the purpose of physician assisted suicide violates the Controlled Substances Act, stating the act is not a “legitimate medical purpose.”
The Ashcroft Directive was challenged by Oregon, and the United State’s Supreme Court stated that the Attorney General’s Office had overstepped its authority. The Court found that the Controlled Substance Act was designed to combat drug use, and that the authority the federal government has to make decisions regarding the practice of medicine falls to the Secretary of Health and Human Services and not the Attorney General.
In 1997, Congress enacted the Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act, which states that federal tax funs cannot be used to pay for or promote assisted suicide or euthanasia. States legalizing physician assisted suicide have stated that Medicaid dollars may be used to fund the law, which is likely to be litigated.
Dr. Jack Kevorkian
Dr. Jack Kevorkian was a Michigan physician and well-known advocate of physician assisted suicide. Kevorkian argued that patients suffering from an incurable disease, pain and suffering should have the right to die if they choose. He developed a suicide machine that allowed his patients to self administer lethal doses of medicine provided by the doctor. His first public physician assisted suicide was in 1989. Janet Adkins, who had been recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s when she utilized Kevorkian’s services. Kevorkian was charged with murder in her death, but the charged were later dismissed after a hearing found that at the time there was no Michigan law outlawing assisted suicide. A number of debates surrounding the incident began, including the fact that Adkins was not terminally ill at the time of her suicide. Kevorkian would be tried two more times before finally being convicted of homicide after he crossed the line and administered the medicine himself.
In 1998, Kevorkian videotaped the death of Thomas Youk, who had been diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease. Due to Youk’s inability to perform the act himself due to his disease, Kevorkian gave Youk the lethal dose of potassium chloride and offered the tape to CBS’ “60 Minutes.” Kevorkian was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 10 to 25 years in prison on April 12, 1999.
Physician assisted suicide will continue to be a hotbed for debate, both legally and morally. While not currently supported by the Constitution, the right to die may someday be included in limited circumstances under a Supreme Court decision. Currently, however, the individual states retain control of the issue.
Other References:
Physician Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia: A Current Legal Perspective by Richard S. Myers
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