Assisted Suicide Bill HB 5420 Dead for Now

Stephen Mendelsohn

Stephen Mendelsohn:

We still need to be concerned about a special session, but for now, 8 years with no bill passing a single committee.

Story below courtesy of Connecticut News Junkie:

HARTFORD, CT — They never expected it to end like this, but legislative leaders decided Monday that it’s not safe for them to return to the state Capitol before the constitutional adjournment of May 6.

New Jersey Motion for Reconsideration

Margaret Dore

To view Dore's brief as submitted, click here.

I.   RELIEF REQUESTED

Margaret Dore moves for reconsideration of the Court’s order dated April 1, 2020, which upheld the constitutionality of the Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act.[1]

II. THE ACT MUST BE SET ASIDE

The Court did not reach the Act’s violation of the object in title rule, which is dispositive to set the Act aside. The Court should reach this issue now to overturn the Act.

The Court’s order states that Dore asked the Court to declare the Act unconstitutional “on grounds not asserted by plaintiffs.”[2] The plaintiffs, did, however, ask the Court to rule on the issue, stating:

Ms. Dore’s brief should be considered by the Court since if the law is unconstitutional under the single object rule, it should be the Court’s responsibility to raise that issue sua sponte even if not raised by Ms. Dore or the Plaintiffs.[3]

The Legislature understood that it was enacting a strictly voluntary law limited to assisted suicide for dying patients.[4] The prior judge expressed a similar view. See, for example, the transcript from the hearing on August 14, 2019 (“This case is not about euthanasia”).[5]

This case, however, is about euthanasia. The Act is also not limited to dying people. Patient voluntariness is allowed, but not required. These are material facts not disclosed by the Act’s title and related findings. The Act is unconstitutional and must be set aside.

Connecticut: Legislators Need to See Our Tears

Author testifying in 2015

By Cathy Ludlum

American democracy is based on the idea that the voices of the people matter. As legislators struggle with difficult issues, trying to balance the needs of conflicting constituencies and solve complicated problems, they need to hear the perspectives of the people most directly affected.

This is why they listen to hour after hour of in-person testimony. Written testimony has its place. Studies and charts provide important information; but being in the presence of the people, hearing their passion, and sometimes seeing their tears brings us together as human beings and makes it possible for legislators to make the best decisions.

New CDC Data Shows Suicide Was Leading Cause of Death Among Oregon Youth in 2018

Note: Oregon's suicide rate began rising after physician-assisted suicide became legal in 1997. This is "the elephant in the living room," not mentioned by the article below. 

To learn more about suicide contagion in Oregon, click here. To view the article below in its entirety, click here. 

Salem, Ore. -- In February the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released data showing that suicide was the leading cause of death among Oregon youth ages 10 to 24 in 2018, up from the second leading cause of death in 2017. Oregon is now ranked 11th highest in the nation for youth suicide death rates (up from 17th in 2017).

Margaret Dore: Euthanasia Act "Must Be Set Aside"

E. David Smith

On March 24, 2020, a hearing was held in Glassman v Grewal, a lawsuit, which seeks to invalidate New Jersey's euthanasia law, formally known as the "Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act."

The specific matter before the court was a motion to dismiss brought by the defendant, New Jersey Attorney General, Gurbir S. Grewal.

The plaintiff, Joseph Glassman, represented by E. David Smith, opposed the motion, as did Margaret Dore, president of Choice is an Illusion, representing herself as amicus curiae.

Dore, who had filed both an amicus brief and a reply brief, argued that the Act must be set aside pursuant to the New Jersey Constitution. Her arguments largely tracked her reply brief, a portion of which is set forth below.

Huge Setback for Proponents in Maryland

Anne Hanson, MD

On March 16, 2020, the Maryland Legislature adjourned without passing bills seeking to legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia (HB 643 and SB 701). Dr. Anne Hanson, states:

We testified on the Senate version, SB 701, on 2/28/20. There was no hearing on the House bill and neither advanced out of committee. Best success we've had since the first go-around in 2015!

Hansen added, this was "a huge setback for proponents considering the bill failed to pass into law by one vote last year."

Thank you to Dr. Hanson and everyone else who made this possible.

Marsha Joiner to Interview Michelle Young Doers

Tomorrow night on the Betrayed by Hospice show, Marsha Joiner interviews Michelle Young Doers, RRT Registered Respiratory Therapist and author of Killing for Profit: The Dark Side of Hospice, available at this link.

Dial 917-388-4520 or listen live on the internet. 5 p.m. Pacific, 6 p.m. Mountain, 7 p.m. Central, 8 p.m. Eastern Time Zones

Michelle writes this heartfelt book from deep within the trenches of what she witnessed first-hand while working for hospice, caring for patients at the end of their life. She saw a business model of cutting corners, making promises that would never be kept and placing the bottom line of the accountants ahead of the care for the patient.

New Hampshire Press Release: "Act Will Create a Perfect Crime"

To view release as sent, click here.

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE, USA, February 12, 2020 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Attorney Margaret Dore, president of Choice is an Illusion, which has fought against assisted suicide and euthanasia legalization efforts in many states, made the following statement in connection with a bill seeking to legalize these practices in New Hampshire. (HB 1659). HEARING TODAY Wednesday, 02/12/20, 1:00 P.M., SH Rm Reps Hall, House Judiciary.

New York Press Release: Don't Make Yourself a Sitting Duck to Your Heirs and Other Predators

To view as sent, click here.

Attorney Margaret Dore, president of Choice is an Illusion, a nonprofit corporation opposed to assisted suicide and euthanasia, made the following statement in connection with the Medical Aid in Dying Act, now pending before the New York State Legislature. (Bills A 2694 and S 3947).

“The Medical Aid in Dying Act is a recipe for elder abuse, financial exploitation and legal murder," said Dore. "Older people with money, meaning the middle class and above, will be especially at risk to their heirs and other financial predators." Dore added, "The poor will also be at risk, but for a different reason.”

“’Aid in dying’ is a euphemism for euthanasia, physician-assisted suicide and assisted suicide,” said Dore.

New Hampshire: Don't Be Sitting Ducks to Non-Voluntary Euthanasia

By Margaret Dore, Esq.

This is a short summary version of problems with New Hampshire's pending euthanasia act. For more a more in depth presentation, click here.

The proposed Death with Dignity Act is based on a similar Act in Oregon. 

Both Acts apply to people predicted to have less than six months to live. In real life, such predictions are often wrong due to mistake and because predicting how long a person will live is an inexact science; sometimes a disease process will stop on its own. 

If passed into law, the Act will apply to people with years or decades to live. This will be especially true if New Hampshire follows Oregon practice to determine life expectancies without treatment. Young adults with chronic conditions, such as insulin dependent diabetes, will be considered terminal and therefore subject to the Act.

Assisting persons, such as family members, can have an agenda, with the more obvious reasons being inheritance and life insurance. 

New Hampshire: Dore Memo Opposing Non-Voluntary Euthanasia

By Margaret Dore, Esq, MBA 

Click here to view a pdf version of this document, consisting of an index, a short memo and an appendix.

I. INTRODUCTION

I am a licensed attorney in Washington State where “death with dignity” (assisted suicide and euthanasia) is legal. Washington’s law is based on a similar law in Oregon.  Both laws are similar to the proposed Act set forth in HB 1659-FN.[1]

I am also a former Law Clerk to the Washington State Supreme Court and the Washington State Court of Appeals. I worked for a year with the United States Department of Justice and have been in private practice since 1990. I am also president of Choice is an Illusion, a nonprofit corporation opposed to assisted suicide and euthanasia.

I have personally appeared and testified against assisted suicide and/or euthanasia in at least 20 US legislatures, including New Hampshire, and also internationally. For more information see www.margaretdore.org and www.choiceillusion.org.

Disability group welcomes ruling against right to assisted suicide in Mass.

To view whole article, click here.

John Kelly, Second Thoughts

Boston, Mass., Jan 14, 2020 / 05:01 pm (CNA).- Second Thoughts Massachusetts, a disability rights group, has praised a recent ruling that there is not a right to assisted suicide in the state's law or its constitution.

In a decision dated Dec. 31, 2019, Justice Mary Ames of the Suffolk Superior Court ruled that physicians who prescribe lethal medication for assisted suicide in Massachusetts can be prosecuted for involuntary manslaughter, but that physicians may provide information and advice on assisted suicide to terminally ill, competent adults.

“We are gratified that the court reaffirmed the law against assisted suicide, and referred the matter to the legislature where lawmaking belongs. Disability rights advocates will continue to press the legislature that assisted suicide is just too dangerous,” John Kelly, director of Second Thoughts, commented Jan. 13.

Reject New York Medical Aid in Dying Act (Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia)

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

Click the links to view a pdf version of this document, consisting of a memorandum and appendix.

I. INTRODUCTION 

The proposed bills amend New York’s public health law by  adding a new article (28F), the Medical Aid in Dying Act.[1] The Act is based on similar laws in Oregon and Washington State.[2]

“Aid in Dying” is a euphemism for euthanasia.[3] The Act, however, purports to prohibit euthanasia.  On close examination, this prohibition will be unenforceable.

If enacted, the Act will apply to people with years or decades to live. It will also facilitate financial exploitation, especially in the inheritance context. Don’t render yourself or someone you care about a sitting duck to heirs and other predators. I urge you to reject the proposed Act.

Press Release: New Jersey Aid in Dying Act Unconstitutional

Margaret Dore, Esq.

Aid in Dying Means Euthanasia

TRENTON, NJ, UNITED STATES -- Attorney Margaret Dore, president of Choice is an Illusion, a non-profit corporation opposed to assisted suicide and euthanasia, has filed a friend of the court brief in Glassman v. Grewal, which seeks to overturn New Jersey's Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act.

"Aid in Dying" is a euphemism for euthanasia. Dore's brief argues that the Act is stacked against the individual, not limited to people near death and unconstitutional due to the way it was enacted.

Join Us in New York on January 14th

Event to be live streamed
To view, click here.

     

Purported Suicide Statistics Released in Vermont

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

According to an article in Monday's Vermont Digger: 

The report released this week — which covered the two years between July 1, 2017, June 30, 2019 — said that 34 patients qualified for the terminal prescriptions under Vermont’s law. Of those, 24 had cancer, four had ALS, three had neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Huntington’s, and three others had unspecified conditions.

A few years ago, I investigated a death under Oregon's similar law in conjunction with attorney Isaac Jackson. There was a near complete lack of transparency in which even the police were unable to obtain verifying information regarding deaths under the law. To learn more, click here.

New Jersey "Aid in Dying Act" Is Unconstitutional

To view the filed print version, including the appendix, click here.

I.  IDENTITY OF AMICUS

Margaret Dore is a licensed attorney in good standing in Washington State where assisted suicide is legal. She is appearing pro se.

Dore is a former Law Clerk to the Washington State Supreme Court and the Washington State Court of Appeals. She worked for a year with the United States Department of Justice and has been in private practice since 1990. She is also president of two nonprofit corporations opposed to assisted suicide and euthanasia: Choice is an Illusion, a 501(c)4 nonprofit corporation; and the Foundation for Choice is an Illusion, a 501(c)3 public charity.

Dore has personally appeared and testified against assisted suicide and/or euthanasia in at least 20 US legislatures, and also internationally. Her CV is attached in the appendix, at pages A-1 through A-4. For more information see www.margaretdore.org and www.choiceillusion.org.

II. STATEMENT OF RELIEF SOUGHT

Invalidation of the Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act (“the Act”).[1]

Help Us Help You

Margaret Dore and Elaine Kolb,
after testifying in Connecticut

Choice is an Illusion and its president, Margaret Dore, work with other people and groups throughout the US and internationally, to stop and reverse the spread of legal assisted suicide and euthanasia.

Dore is a fourth generation lawyer in Washington State USA, where her work has included guardianship and family law.  She has seen the terrible things that people do to each other for money. This includes court-appointed guardians who steal from the very people they are charged to protect. 

Delaware: Seemingly Dead Euthanasia Bill Could Start Moving

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

HB 140, while it failed to pass in the 2019 legislative session or even come to a vote, is still alive due to Delaware's having a two year legislative cycle.

Per Alex Schadenberg, Executive Director of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, the seemingly dead bill could start moving in the 2020 session. He's right. We must be prepared.

A Short History of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia in Montana

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA                                                                                                          

Assisted suicide means that someone provides the means and/or information for another person to commit suicide.  If a doctor is involved, the practice may be termed physician-assisted suicide.  Euthanasia is the administration of a lethal agent by another person.

A.  Assisted Suicide

In 1895, the Montana Legislature enacted a criminal statute prohibiting assisted suicide as a "crime against the public safety."[1] In 1907, 1921 and 1947, this statute was re-codified, but its text remained unchanged.[2] The statute stated: "Every person who deliberately aids, or advises or encourages another to commit suicide is guilty of a felony."[3]

ADA Will Trump Euthanasia Prohibition

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

Bills in New York State seek to pass a medical aid in dying act.[1] "Aid in dying" is a euphemism for active euthanasia, meaning the administration of a lethal agent to another person.[2][3]

The act also prohibits euthanasia, stating:

A health care professional or other person shall not administer the medication [lethal dose] to the patient. (Emphasis added).[4]

This prohibition is, however, unenforceable. This is due to the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”).

That’s Not Assisted Suicide, That’s Murder

To view original article, click here

A Montreal couple is calling for disciplinary measures against a psychologist they say counselled one of them to kill the terminally ill other.

When Miranda Edwards was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer she said she was determined to fight it.

“I want to live, I want every medical intervention possible,” she said. “I will fight to the end. I will do every treatment, everything possible to stay alive.”

Speaking in Washington State USA

Margaret Dore

This evening, Margaret Dore, a lawyer and president of Choice is an Illusion, was the featured speaker at St. Louise Parish Hall in Bellevue, Washington State.

Her main topics included problems with assisted suicide in Washington and how to win in the future against legalization. She also discussed suicide contagion in Oregon.

To learn more about assisted suicide in Washington State, click here, here and here.

Special thanks to Debby Ummel who organized the event.

Washington State Act Must Be Overturned

Click here for pdf version.

Washington State’s Death with Dignity Act was passed by the voters as Initiative1000. During the election, backers touted it as providing "choice" for individuals. A glossy brochure declared, "Only the patient — and no one else — may administer the [lethal dose]." The Act does not say this anywhere.[1]

•  The Act legalized assisted suicide as that term is traditionally defined. In the fine print, the Act allows euthanasia.

New Office of Inspector General Report: Hospice Deficiencies Pose Risks to Medicare Beneficiaries

WHY WE DID THIS STUDY  

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) has identified significant vulnerabilities in the Medicare hospice benefit and found that hospices did not always provide needed services to beneficiaries and sometimes provided poor quality care.  Click here to view report.

"Do or Refer" Doctors Are Not Allowed to Use Their Best Judgment for Individual Patients (No More Jeanette Halls)

Jeanette Hall with her son Scott
shortly after she changed
her mind.

Margaret Dore Esq., MBA*

Yesterday, a doctor asked me about "do or refer" provisions in some of the newer bills seeking to legalize assisted suicide in the United States. For this reason, I now address the subject in the context of a 2018 Wisconsin bill, which did not pass.

The bill, AB 216, required the patient's attending physician to "fulfill the request for medication or refer," i.e. to write a lethal prescription for the purpose of killing the patient, or to make an effective referral to another physician, who would do it.

The bill also said that the attending physician's failure to comply would be "unprofessional conduct" such that the physician would be subject to discipline. The bill states:

Nevada: Bill All But Dead

SB 165, which would have legalized assisted suicide and euthanasia in Nevada, failed to make it out of its house of origin, so that it is now all but dead. According to 3 News Las Vegas:

While the bills the couldn't make it out of committee are technically off the table, they won't officially be out of the question until the Legislative Session ends in June.

The next major deadline comes on May 17. 

Maine: Tell the Legislature to Reject Bill LD 1313; Say "No" to Assisted Suicide & Euthanasia

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

Click here for pdf version.

I.  INTRODUCTION

I am an attorney in Washington State where assisted suicide is legal.[1] Our law is based on a similar law in Oregon. In the fine print, both laws allow euthanasia. Both laws are similar to the proposed bill, LD 1313.[2]

The proposed bill seeks to legalize physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia as those terms are traditionally defined. If enacted, the bill will apply to people with years or decades to live. Individuals with money, meaning the middle class and above, will be especially at risk. I urge you to reject LD 1313.

Press Release: Maine Death with Dignity Bill Will Create a Perfect Crime

AUGUSTA, MAINE, UNITED STATES

Dore: “The proposed bill is a recipe for abuse, exploitation and legal murder.”

“Persons assisting a suicide or performing a euthanasia can have an agenda to benefit themselves.”

Contact: Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

(206) 697-1217

Attorney Margaret Dore, president of Choice is an Illusion, which has fought assisted suicide and euthanasia legalization efforts in many states, and now Maine, made the following statement in connection with a scheduled hearing on a bill seeking to legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia in that state. (Bill LD 1313 , H.P. 948). Hearing Wednesday, 04/10/19, 9:00 A.M., Joint Committee on Health & Human Services, Cross Building, Room 209, State Capitol, Augusta Maine.

American Nursing Association's Draft Position Statement Regarding Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide Is "Misleading and Dangerous"

By Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

The ANA Center for Ethics and Human Rights Advisory Board is seeking public comment on a proposed position statement, "The Nurse's Role When a Patient Requests Aid in Dying."

"Aid in Dying" is a traditional euphemism for assisted suicide and euthanasia. The first paragraph of the proposed statement is set forth below, followed by my responding submission.