In Oregon, Other Suicides Have Increased with the Legalization of Physician-Assisted Suicide

By Margaret K. Dore, Esq.

Since the passage of Oregon’s law allowing physician-assisted suicide, other suicides in Oregon have steadily increased. This is consistent with a suicide contagion in which the legalization of physician-assisted suicides has encouraged other suicides. In Oregon, the financial and emotional impacts of suicide on family members and the broader community are devastating and long-lasting.[1]

A.  Suicide is Contagious 

It is well known that suicide is contagious. A famous example is Marilyn Monroe.[2] Her widely reported suicide was followed by “a spate of suicides.”[3]

With the understanding that suicide is contagious, groups such as the National Institute of Mental Health and the World Health Organization have developed guidelines for the responsible reporting of suicide, to prevent contagion. Key points include that the risk of additional suicides increases:

[W]hen the story explicitly describes the suicide method, uses dramatic/graphic headlines or images, and repeated/extensive coverage sensationalizes or glamorizes a death.[4] 

B. Physician-Assisted Suicide in Oregon

In Oregon, prominent cases of physician-assisted suicide include Lovelle Svart and Brittany Maynard.

Lovelle Svart died in 2007.[5] The Oregonian, which is Oregon’s largest paper, violated the recommended guidelines for the responsible reporting of suicide by explicitly describing her suicide method and by employing “dramatic/graphic images.” Indeed, visitors to the paper’s website were invited “to hear and see when Lovelle swallowed the fatal dose.”[6] Today, ten years later, there are still photos of her online, lying in bed, dying.[7]

Brittany Maynard reportedly died from physician-assisted suicide in Oregon, on November 1, 2014. Contrary to the recommended guidelines, there was “repeated/extensive coverage” in multiple media, worldwide.[8] This coverage is ongoing, albeit on a smaller and less intense scale.

C. The Young Man Wanted to Die Like Brittany Maynard

A month after Ms. Maynard’s death, Dr. Will Johnston was presented with a twenty year old patient during an emergency appointment.[9] The young man, who had been brought in by his mother, was physically healthy, but had been acting oddly and talking about death.[10]

Dr. Johnston asked the young man if he had a plan.[11] The young man said "yes," that he had watched a video about Ms. Maynard.[12] He said that he was very impressed with her and that he identified with her and that he thought it was a good idea for him to die like her.[13] He also told Dr. Johnston that after watching the video he had been surfing the internet looking for suicide drugs.[14] Dr. Johnston’s declaration states:

He was actively suicidal and agreed to go to the hospital, where he stayed for five weeks until it was determined that he was sufficiently safe from self-harm to go home.[15]

The young man had wanted to die like Brittany Maynard.

D. In Oregon, Other Suicides Have Increased with Legalization of Physician-Assisted Suicide

Oregon government reports show the following positive correlation between the legalization of physician-assisted suicide and an increase in other suicides.  Per the reports:

• Oregon legalized physician-assisted suicide “in late 1997.”[16]
• By 2000, Oregon’s conventional suicide rate was "increasing significantly."[17]
• By 2007, Oregon's conventional suicide rate was 35% above the national average.[18]
• By 2010, Oregon's conventional suicide rate was 41% above the national average.[19]
• By 2012, Oregon's conventional suicide rate was 42% above the national average.[20]
• By 2014, Oregon's conventional suicide rate was 43.1% higher than the national average.[21]

E. The Financial and Emotional Cost of Suicide in Oregon 

Oregon’s report for 2012 describes the cost of suicide as “enormous.” The report states:

Suicide is the second leading cause of death among Oregonians aged 15 to 34 years, and the eighth leading cause of death among all ages in Oregon. The cost of suicide is enormous. In 201[2] alone, self-inflicted injury hospitalization charges in Oregon exceeded $54 million; and the estimate of total lifetime cost of suicide in Oregon was over $677 million. The loss to families and communities broadens the impact of each death. (footnotes omitted).[22]

F. The Significance for Montana

In Montana, the law on assisted suicide is governed by   the Montana Supreme Court decision, Baxter v. State, 354 Mont. 234 (2009). Baxter gives doctors who assist a suicide a potential defense to criminal prosecution.[23] Baxter does not legalize assisted suicide by giving doctors or anyone else immunity.[24]

The decision, however, is also confusing so that it can be read different ways. More importantly, some doctors are claiming to have assisted suicides in Montana. If nothing is done to clarify the law, there will at some point be de facto legality.

Montana already has a higher suicide rate than Oregon.[25] If Baxter is not overturned and/or the law clarified that assisted suicide is not legal, the suicide problem in Montana will only get worse. Montana does not need the Oregon experience.

Footnotes:

[1]  Shen X., Millet L., Suicides in Oregon: Trends and Associated Factors. 2003-2012, Oregon Health Authority, Portland Oregon, p.3, Executive Summary. 

[2]  Margot Sanger-Katz, “The Science Behind Suicide Contagion,” The New York Times, August 13, 2014.

[3]  Id.

[4]  "Recommendations for Reporting on Suicide,” The National Institute of Mental Health. See also “Preventing Suicide: A Resource for Media Professionals,” World Health Organization, at http://www.who.int/mental_health/prevention/suicide/resource_media.pdf.

[5]  Ed Madrid, “Lovelle Svart, 1945 - 2007, The Oregonian, September 28, 2007. 

[6]  Id.

[7]  The still shots at this link, are still up today, July 7, 2017.

[8]  The worldwide coverage of Ms. Maynard in multiple media started with an exclusive cover story in People Magazine. Other coverage has included TV, radio, print, web and social media.

[9]  Declaration of Williard Johnston, MD, May 24, 2015. 

[10]  Id.

[11]  Id.

[12]  Id.

[13]  Id.

[14]  Id.

[15]  Id.

[16]  Oregon's Death with Dignity report for 2016, p. 4, first line. 

[17]  Oregon Health Authority News Release, September 9, 2010, at https://choiceisanillusion.files.wordpress.com/2017/07/news-release-09-09-10.pdf ("After decreasing in the 1990s, suicide rates have been increasing significantly since 2000").  

[18]  Suicides in Oregon: Trend and Risk Factors, issued September 2010 (data through 2007). 

[19]  Suicides in Oregon: Trends and Risk Factors, 2012 Report (data through 2010). 
[20]  Suicides in Oregon: Trends and Associated Factors, 2003-2012 (data through 2012). 
[21] Oregon Vital Statistics Report 2015 (data through 2014;
at page 6-26, third full paragraph)

[22]  See https://choiceisanillusion.files.wordpress.com/2017/07/suicides-in-oregon-2003-2012-p-6.pdf  

[23]  Greg Jackson, Esq. & Matt Bowman, Esq., "Analysis of Implications of the Baxter Case on Potential Criminal Liability," April 2010.
[24]  State Senator Jim Shockley and Margaret Dore, Esq., "No, physician-assisted suicide is not legal in Montana: It's a recipe for elder abuse and more," The Montana Lawyer," The State Bar of Montana, November 2011.
[25]  CDC Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, "QuickStats: Age Adjusted Suicide Rates by State, United States, 2012," published on November 14, 2014.

Hawaii: Dore Testimony Opposing SB 1129 SD 1 (No Assisted Suicide/Euthanasia)

To Chairman Keith-Agaran and members of the Committee:

As some of you know, I am an attorney in Washington State where assisted suicide and euthanasia are legal.  Our law is based on a law in Oregon.  Both laws are similar to the proposed act in SB 1129 SD 1.

Attached please find a memo with supporting documentation opposing the act. The act seeks to legalize physician-assisted suicide and allow euthanasia. My memo and documentation can also be viewed at these links: https://choiceisanillusion.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/dore-new-memo-sb-1129.pdf and https://choiceisanillusion.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/appendix-new-memo-sb-1129.pdf

The act will encourage people with years or decades to live to throw away their lives.  (See memo, pp 3-6). The act is a recipe for elder abuse, especially for those in the middle class and above in the inheritance situation. (Id., pp. 8-9). The act creates the perfect crime in which the death is allowed to occur in private, without oversight, and the death certificate gives perpetrators a "stay out of jail free card."  (Id., pp. 10-13).  

The Oregon Experience is B.S.

bull

To view this article in a pdf format, see "Dore Memo Opposing Prop. 106," which can be viewed here and here.

The claim by assisted suicide proponents, that Oregon's law is safe, cannot be independently verified: (1) Studies making the claim are invalid; (2) Oregon's data cannot be verified; and (3) Even law enforcement is denied access to information.

Montana: Say "No" to the Oregon Experience

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

To view pdf version with footnotes, click here.

Since the passage of Oregon’s law allowing physician-assisted suicide, other suicides in Oregon have steadily increased. This is consistent with a suicide contagion in which the legalization of physician-assisted suicides has encouraged other suicides. In Oregon, the financial and emotional impacts of suicide on family members and the broader community are devastating
and long-lasting.

Nancy Valko on Oregon: What hides in the dark?

"No other area of medical practice-even lethal injection-is allowed such secrecy and immunity." Nancy Valko, RN

"What hides in
 the dark?"

Edited by Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

Note two provisions in Oregon's law:

“The Health Services shall make rules to facilitate the collection of information regarding compliance with ORS 127.800 to 127.897. Except as otherwise required by law, the information collected shall not be a public record and may not be made available for inspection by the public.” (Only an “an annual statistical report of information” is made public.) (Emphasis added.)

And 

“No person shall be subject to civil or criminal liability or professional disciplinary action for participating in good faith compliance with ORS 127.800 to 127.897. ” (Emphasis added.)

There is also no requirement that the doctor or anyone else witness or even be present at the lethal overdose.

Oregon: Jury awards$3 million to fired nurse who complained of 'rushing patients through' to save money

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2015/09/jury_awards_3_million_to_legac.html

By Aimee Green

A Portland jury on Friday awared a nurse more than $3 million -- agreeing that she was wrongfully terminated by
Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center after she complained to management that cost cutting measures were jeopardizing patient care. Registered nurse Linda Boly said Saturday that she felt vindicated by the verdict. She hopes it sends a "big message" to Legacy Health System that "rushing patients through" the process endangers them. . . .

To read the rest of the article, click here.

Utah: Testimony of Kenneth Stevens MD Opposing Assisted Suicide

To view testimony as a pdf, click here.

1.  I strongly urge you to Vote No on HB 264, which seeks to legalize physician assisted suicide in Utah

Photo of me and my patient Jeanette Hall, 15 years after
I talked her out of assisted suicide in Oregon
Photo credit - Daily Signal

I am a cancer doctor in Oregon, where physician-assisted suicide is legal. I was also raised in Logan, graduated from USU, and received my MD from the University of Utah Medical School 50 years ago. I am Professor Emeritus and former chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at Oregon Health and Science University. I regularly visit Utah. I continue to practice in my cancer medical specialty.

New York Memo Opposing Bills A. 10059 and S. 7579 - Web Version

https://choiceisanillusion.files.wordpress.com/2016/06/ny-memo-05-31-16_001.pdf

I. INTRODUCTION

I am a lawyer in Washington State where physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia are legal.[1] Our law is based on a similar law in Oregon.  Both laws are similar to the proposed bills, A. 10059 and S. 7579.[2]

The bills are titled “Medical Aid in Dying.”  There is, however, no requirement that patients be dying. “Eligible” patients may have years, even decades, to live. The bills are also sold as a promotion of patient choice and control. The bills are instead stacked against the patient and a recipe for elder abuse. Finally, the bills are deceptively written; they are not what they appear to be. I urge you to vote “No.”

South Africa: Dore Expert Witness Affidavit

Below, an excerpt from the expert witness affidavit of Attorney Margaret K. Dore, filed in the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa, SCA Case No: 531/2015. 

The affidavit, including attachments, can be viewed by clicking here.

The Oregon and Washington Acts

12.  The Oregon and Washington "Death with Dignity Acts" legalize physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia as those terms are traditionally defined. See memo, pp. 2-3 (regarding definitions)  at "MD."

Canada: Oregon Doctor Urges Rejection of Carter and Bill C-14

Dear Member of Canadian Parliament,

VOTE NO ON BILL C-14; INVOKE THE NOTWITHSTANDING CLAUSE TO OVERRIDE THE CARTER DECISION

"Don't follow Oregon's
 failed experiment"

For 49 years I have been a cancer doctor in Oregon where assisted suicide has been legal for a number of years. I have seen the tragedy and harm to patients, the medical profession and society from assisted suicide.

If enacted Bill C-14 will encourage people with years to live to have their lives terminated prematurely. My patient, Jeanette Hall, wanted assisted suicide from me in 2000. After helping her have hope in her cancer condition, she agreed to be treated and is now alive and very well 15 years later.  She says, "It's great to be alive!"

Quick Facts About Assisted Suicide

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

For a pdf version, please click here

1.  Assisted Suicide

Assisted suicide means that someone provides the means and/or information for another person to commit suicide. When a physician is involved, the practice is physician-assisted suicide.

2. The Oregon and Washington Laws

In Oregon, physician-assisted suicide was legalized in 1997 via a ballot measure. In Washington State, a similar law was passed by another ballot measure in 2008 and went into effect in 2009.

3.  Problems With Legalization

The Oregon and Washington laws are a recipe for elder abuse and encourage people with years to live to throw away their lives. In Oregon, there are documented cases of the Oregon Heath Plan (Medicaid) steering patients to physician-assisted suicide via coverage incentives. Oregon’s conventional suicide rate has increased with legalization of assisted suicide, which is consistent with a suicide contagion. Patients and families are traumatized.

The Oregon and Washington laws require the death certificate to be falsified to reflect a natural death via a terminal disease, as opposed to the actual cause of death, a lethal dose. The significance is a lack of transparency and an inability to take legal action against overreaching parties.

The Cost of Physician-Assisted Suicide.

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA*
Updated November 25, 2015 

It is often assumed that legalizing physician-assisted suicide will save states money. Don’t be so sure. In Oregon, legalization is correlated with an increase in other suicides, the cost of which is "enormous."

More Suicide

Oregon's law legalizing physician-assisted suicide went into effect “in late 1997.”[1] Since then, Oregon has reported a small, but steadily rising number of deaths.[2]

Oregon's other suicides, which are tracked separately, have also increased. Indeed, by 2000, Oregon's suicide rate for other suicides was "increasing significantly."[2] By 2007, Oregon's suicide rate for other suicides was 35% above the national average.[3] By 2010, Oregon's suicide rate for other suicides was 41% above the national average.[4]

The Financial Cost

The financial cost of these other suicides (and suicide attempts) is huge for Oregon, a smaller population state. The Oregon Health Authority states:

The cost of suicide is enormous. In 2010 alone, self-inflicted injury hospitalization charges exceeded 41 million dollars; and the estimate of total lifetime cost of suicide in Oregon was over 680 million dollars. (Footnotes omitted).[5]

Dore Professional Commentary

http://jurist.org/hotline/2015/10/margaret-dore-physician-assisted-suicide.php

California's New Assisted Suicide Law: Whose Choice Will it Be?

JURIST Guest Columnist, Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

Editor, Maria Coladonato; 

©  WikiMedia (Christopher Padalinski)

California has passed a bill to legalize physician-assisted suicide, which is scheduled to go into effect during 2016. "The End of Life Option Act" was sold as giving patients choice and control at the end of life. The bill, in fact, is about ending the lives of people who are not necessarily dying anytime soon and giving other people the "option" to hurry them along. The bill is a recipe for elder abuse and family trauma. 

Attorney slams California suicide bill

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Dore: “Even if you like the concept of assisted suicide, SB 128 is the wrong bill.”

Contact: Margaret Dore (206) 697-1217

Seattle, WA -- Attorney Margaret Dore, president of Choice is an Illusion, which has fought assisted suicide legalization efforts in many states and now California, made the following statement after the California Senate Appropriations Committee passed SB 128 on May 28, sending the assisted suicide bill to the Senate floor.

"SB 128 is sold as giving people an 'end of life option,’” Dore said. “The fact is this bill is about ending the lives of people who aren’t necessarily dying anytime soon, and giving other people the ‘option’ to hurry them along."

Dore, an attorney in Washington State where assisted suicide is legal, explained, “In my law practice, I started out working in guardianships, wills and probate, and saw abuse of all kinds, especially where there was money involved (where there's a will, there are heirs). Then, in 2008, I got dragged to a meeting about our assisted suicide law and saw the perfect crime: your heir could help sign you up, and once the lethal dose was in the house, there was no oversight. Not even a witness is required. If you struggled, who would know?"

Assisted Suicide: How One Woman Chose to Die, Then Survived

http://dailysignal.com/2015/05/18/assisted-suicide-how-one-woman-chose-to-die-then-survived/

Kelsey Harkness / May 18, 2015

In 1994, Jeanne Hall, a resident of King City, Ore., voted in favor of Ballot Measure 16, which for the first time in the United States, would allow terminally ill patients to end their own lives through physician-assisted suicide.

“I thought, hey, I wouldn’t want anyone to suffer,” Hall told The Daily Signal. “So I checked it. Then it became legal.”

That day at the ballot box, Hall never could have predicted that more than 15 years later, she would be diagnosed with inoperable colon cancer.

Doctors gave Hall, who was 55 at the time, two options: She could get radiation and chemotherapy and attempt to fight the cancer, or she could take a lethal dose of barbiturates to end her life.

“I was calling it over,” she said. “I wasn’t going to do chemo. When I heard what might take place in radiation "I wasn’t going to do it. I looked for the easy way out.”

Without treatment, Hall was given six months to a year to live, and therefore qualified for physician-assisted suicide through Oregon’s Death With Dignity law.

“She was terminal because she was refusing treatment,” Dr. Kenneth Stevens, one of Hall’s two cancer doctors, told The Daily Signal. “It’s like a person could be considered terminal if they’re not taking [their] insulin or [other] medications.”

Washington Post Puts the Spotlight on Hospice/Palliative Care Abuse

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

Choice is an Illusion, President

Below and finally, a comprehensive article in a major paper describing what a lot of us know already, that non-consenting, non-dying people are being killed with morphine and other drugs under the guise of hospice/palliative care.  The article, excerpted below from the Washington Post, describes cases in the US. There are similar cases in Canada and the UK (e.g, the former "Liverpool Pathway").

There are a myriad of reasons why these cases occur, including mistakes and negligence, which is described in the Post article.  The wishes of heirs interested in a speedy inheritance and/or to get dad out of the way before he changes his will, can also be at play.  For a particularly egregious example, see William Dotinga, "Grim Complaint Against Kaiser Hospital," at http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/02/06/43641.htm

With hospice, eligibility is determined by a prediction of less than six months to live.  This is the same eligibility cutoff used for legal assisted suicide in Oregon and Washington State.  This is, however, just a prediction and there are many people deemed eligible who live longer than that and/or who are not dying.  See, e.g., the Washington Post article excerpted below and this article from the Seattle Weekly: "Terminal Uncertainty."  See also this affidavit from Oregon doctor Kenneth Stevens, MD and this affidavit from John Norton.

This hospice/palliative care abuse issue is important for itself, as well, as for its implications in the larger debate over assisted suicide/euthanasia legalization.  Consider, for example, the letter below from Washington State.  The author, the owner of a care facility, describes how since passage of Washington's assisted suicide law, doctors more readily resort to morphine, sometimes without consent.  He states:

Since [Washington's assisted suicide law] passed, we have . . .  noticed that some members of the medical profession are quick to bring out the morphine to begin comfort care without considering treatment. Sometimes they do this on their own without telling the client and/or the family member in charge of the client's care. http://www.choiceillusion.org/2013/12/it-wasnt-father-saying-that-he-wanted.html

He also describes a general devaluation of older people, as follows:

Since our [assisted suicide] law was passed, I have also observed that some medical professionals are quick to write off older people as having no quality of life whereas in years past, most of the professionals we dealt with found joy in caring for them. Our clients reciprocated that joy and respect.  (Id.).

He concludes by asking readers to not make Washington's mistake of legalizing assisted suicide. He states:

Someday, we too will be old. I, personally, want to be cared for and have my choices respected. I, for one, am quite uncomfortable with these developments. Don't make our mistake.  (Id.).

* * *
Below, the excerpt from the Washington Post article.

As More Hospices Enroll Patients who Aren't Dying, Questions About Lethal Doses Arise

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/storyline/wp/2014/08/21/as-more-hospices-enroll-patients-who-arent-dying-questions-about-lethal-doses-arise/?

By Peter Whoriskey at peter.whoriskey@washpost.com

UK: Falconer Assisted Suicide Bill: "Eligible" Patients May Have Years, Even Decades, to Live

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

www.margaretdore.com

www.choiceillusion.org

In the UK, HL Bill 6 is an assisted suicide law proposed by Lord Falconer, which is based on the Oregon and Washington assisted suicide laws.  Bill 6 would legalize assisted suicide for persons with a "terminal illness," defined in terms of a prediction of less than six months to live.[1]  The Oregon and Washington laws have a similar six months to live criteria.[2]

Under all three laws, "eligible" patients may have years, even decades, to live.  This is true for the following the following reasons: 

1.      Predictions of life expectancy can be wrong.  

Patients may have years or even decades to live because predicting life expectancy is not an exact science.  Consider John Norton who was diagnosed with ALS.  He was told that he would get progressively worse (be paralyzed) and die in three to five years.  Instead, the disease progression stopped on its own.  In a 2012 affidavit, at age 74, he states:

If assisted suicide or euthanasia had been available to me in the 1950's, I would have missed the bulk of my life and my life yet to come.  http://www.massagainstassistedsuicide.org/2012/09/john-norton-cautionary-tale.html [3]

2.      The six months to live is determined without treatment. 

Consider Oregon resident, Jeanette Hall, who was diagnosed with cancer and decided to "do" Oregon's law.  Her doctor, Kenneth Stevens, didn't believe in assisted suicide and encouraged her to be treated instead.  It is now 14 years later and she is "thrilled" to be alive.  This is Dr. Steven's affidavit filed by the Canadian government in Leblanc v. Canada, now dismissed, discussing Jeanette.  http://choiceisanillusion.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/signed-stevens-aff-9-18-12-as-filed.pdf   This is Jeanette's affidavit, also filed by the Canadian government:  http://choiceisanillusion.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/jeanette-hall-affidavit.pdf  

3.      In Oregon, the six months to live criteria is now being interpreted to include chronic conditions such as diabetes.  

Oregon doctor, William Toffler, explains: 

Our law applies to “terminal” patients who are predicted to have less than six months to live. In practice, this idea of terminal has recently become stretched to include people with chronic conditions such as chronic lower respiratory disease and diabetes. Persons with these conditions are considered terminal if they are dependent on their medications, such as insulin, to live. They are unlikely to die in less than six months unless they don’t receive their medications. Such persons, with treatment, could otherwise have years or even decades to live.[4]  

* * *
[1]  See HL Bill 6, Sections 2, at http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2014-15/assisteddying.html (defining "terminal illness" as an "inevitably progressive condition which cannot be reversed by treatment," and for which the patient "is reasonably expected to die in six months.").
[2]  See ORS 127.800 s.1.01(12) and RCW 70.245.010(13) at    http://public.health.oregon.gov/ProviderPartnerResources/EvaluationResearch/DeathwithDignityAct/Pages/ors.aspx and http://apps.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=70.245.010  (both stating:  "'Terminal disease' means an incurable and irreversible disease that has been medically confirmed and will, within reasonable medical judgment, produce death within six months.").
[3]  See also:  Nina Shapiro, "Terminal Uncertainty," Washington's new "Death with Dignity" law allows doctors to help people commit suicide - once they've determined that the patient has only six months to live. But what if they're wrong? The Seattle Weekly, January 14, 2009 http://choiceisanillusion.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/terminal-uncertainty.pdf and http://www.seattleweekly.com/2009-01-14/news/terminal-uncertainty
[4]  Letter from William Toffler, MD, to the New Haven Register, published February 26, 2014, 2^nd letter at http://www.nhregister.com/opinion/20140226/letters-to-the-editor-dying-deserve-right-to-choice  See also, Dore Memo at pp 6-7, at http://choiceisanillusion.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/nj-a2270-legal-analysis_001.pdf and Margaret Dore, “Oregon's new assisted suicide report: chronic conditions;  people with money and more,” February 19, 2014, at http://www.choiceillusion.org/2014/01/oregons-new-assisted-suicide-report.html 

Legal/Policy Analysis Against New Jersey Bill, A2270 (Assisted Suicide & Euthanasia)

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

A legal/policy analysis against New Jersey's proposed assisted suicide/euthanasia bill, A2270, can be viewed by clicking here.

If the analysis is "too big" for your computer, you can view it in pieces, by clicking the following links to: the cover sheet and index; the memo; and the appendices.

There are three main points:

1.  A2270 is titled "Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act."  "Aid in Dying" is a euphemism for assisted suicide and euthanasia.  The title is, regardless, deceptive because it implies that A2270 is limited to people who are dying, which is untrue.  A2270 applies to people who may have years, even decades, to live.  See memo, pp. 5-8.

2. The bill is a recipe for elder abuse with the most obvious reason being a complete lack of oversight when the lethal dose is administered to the patient.  Even if he struggled, who would know? See memo, pp. 8-17.

3. The bill lacks transparency and accountability.  Id., pp. 17-19.

The last part of the memo is a discussion of the "Oregon and Washington Experience," with supporting documentation attached.

Please contact me with any questions or concerns at contact@choiceillusion.org or margaretdore@margaretdore.com.

Margaret Dore, President
Choice is an Illusion, a human rights organization
Law Offices of Margaret K. Dore, P.S.
www.choiceillusion.org
www.margaretdore.com
1001 4th Avenue, 44th Floor
Seattle, WA 98154

Live Free or Die! New Hampshire Obliterates Oregon-Style Death with Dignity Act!

Today, the New Hampshire House of Representatives defeated HB 1325. The bill had sought to enact an Oregon-style assisted suicide law in New Hampshire. The bipartisan vote was an overwhelming 219 to 66.

To view a short testimony against the bill, click here.

"I hope that Connecticut does not repeat Oregon's mistake."

http://www.journalinquirer.com/opinion/letters_to_the_editor/march-letters/article_ccb4e384-a2bb-11e3-b9c8-001a4bcf887a.html (second letter)

I have been a professor of family medicine and a practicing physician in Oregon for more than 30 years. I write to provide some insight on the issue of assisted suicide, which is legal in Oregon, and which has been proposed for legalization in Connecticut (raised bill No. 5326).

Our law applies to “terminal” patients who are predicted to have less than six months to live.  In practice, this idea of “terminal” has recently become stretched to include people with chronic conditions, such as “chronic lower respiratory disease” and “diabetes”.  Persons with these conditions are considered terminal if they are dependent on their medications, such as insulin, to live.  They are unlikely die in less than six months unless they don’t receive their medications.  Such persons, with treatment, could otherwise have years or even decades to live.

This illustrates a great problem with our law — it encourages people with years to live, to throw away their lives.

I am also concerned that by starting to label people with chronic conditions “terminal,” there will be an excuse to deny such persons appropriate medical treatment to allow them to continue to live healthy and productive lives.

These factors are something for your legislators to consider. Do you want this to happen to you or your family? Furthermore, in my practice I have had many patients ask about assisted-suicide. In each case, I have offered care and treatment but declined to provide assisted suicide. In one case, the man’s response was “Thank you.”

To read a commentary on the most recent Oregon government assisted-suicide report, which lists chronic conditions as the “underlying illness” justifying assisted suicide, please go here:  http://www.noassistedsuicideconnecticut.org/2014/02/oregons-new-assisted-suicide-report.html

To read about some of my cases in Oregon, please go here:  http://www.choiceillusion.org/p/what-people-mean_25.html

I hope that Connecticut does not repeat Oregon’s mistake.

William L. Toffler
Portland, Ore.