Is Physician Assisted Suicide Morally Wrong?
In 1997, Oregon enacted the Death With Dignity Act, allowing terminally ill individuals to end their lives through the voluntary self-administration of a lethal dose of medication expressly prescribed by a physician for that purpose. To participate, a patient must be (1) 18 years of age or older, (2) capable of making and communicating health care decisions for themselves, and (3) diagnosed with a terminal illness that will lead to death within six months. It is up to the attending physician to determine whether these criteria have been met. The law requires that the patient ask to participate voluntarily on their behalf. Euthanasia and physical assisted suicide are different; in euthanasia, a doctor typically administers a lethal dosage of medication to the patient. In the DWDA, a physician prescribes a lethal dose of medication to a patient, but the patient – not the doctor – administers the medication. Euthanasia is illegal in every state in the U.S., including Oregon. (Oregon Death with Dignity Act, n.d, para. 16)
The process of physician-assisted suicide is two Oregon-licensed physicians certify the person is eligible, and both physicians perform informed consent, explaining alternative end-of-life care options. Suppose either physician is unsure about the person’s judgment. In that case, they must refer the patient to a psychologist or psychiatrist for consultation. Then, the patient makes two verbal requests, separated by at least 15 days, that a physician records in the medical record. (Death With Dignity Clarified, 17 Aug. 2023., para. 1-3)
The controversy of physician-assisted suicide is whether or not it is morally wrong; the first side for assisted suicide claims we have an obligation to relieve the suffering of our fellow human beings and to respect their dignity. Lying in our hospitals today are people afflicted with excruciatingly painful and terminal conditions and diseases that have left them permanently incapable of functioning in any dignified human fashion. They can only look forward to lives filled with more suffering, degradation, and deterioration. When such people beg for a merciful end to their pain and indignity, refusing their pleas is cruel and inhumane. Compassion demands that we comply and cooperate. (Assisted Suicide, A Right or Wrong? n.d., para. 5-6)
The side that opposes any measures permitting assisted suicide argues that society has a moral duty to protect and preserve all life. To allow people to help others in destroying their lives violates a fundamental duty we have to respect human life. A society committed to preserving and protecting life should not commission people to destroy it. (Assisted Suicide, n.d., para 4-5)
The Catholic Church John Paul II was blunt in his condemnation. Even if a patient requests assisted suicide, it remains an “inexcusable injustice.” Although controversies over physician-assisted suicide might seem to have come up only in our own time, he quotes St. Augustine, who wrote over 1500 years ago: “It is never right to kill another: even if he should wish it, indeed if he requests it because, hanging between life and death, he begs for help in freeing the soul struggling against the bonds of the body and longing to be released; nor is it permissable even when a sick person is no longer able to live.” (JP 11: Dying with Dignity, n.d., para. 11)
As a Catholic Community, we should work with government leaders to regulate the Oregon Death with Dignity Act. The first step would be getting the Catholic Church more involved. One of the most common reasons for terminally ill patients wanting to end their lives is they do not want to burden their families with taking care of them; as a group, we propose the need for more affordable end-of-life care. We also suggest the idea of the Catholic Church advocating for the families who lost loved ones to assisted suicide and making society more aware of the moral issue at hand. The terminally ill are innocent lives who are not a burden to their families, and they need advocacy for other options. We, as Catholics, need to stand up to The Death with Dignity Act for those who can’t.