Is There a Right to Die?

“Oregon has had physician-assisted death since 1997. Canada, Belgium, and the Netherlands have broader euthanasia laws. In every jurisdiction, the predicted abuses haven't materialized on the scale critics predicted, and many who obtain the legal option never use it but report significant relief from having it. The empirical record does not support the slippery slope argument.”

“Autonomy is the bedrock of medical ethics. We allow patients to refuse life-sustaining treatment, including ventilators and feeding tubes, even when death is the certain result. The right to choose death with dignity is a logical extension of the same principle already operative in standard medical practice.”

“The Dutch experience shows what mission creep looks like in practice. Euthanasia that began for terminal physical illness has expanded to psychiatric conditions including depression and to elderly people who describe themselves as simply 'tired of life'. The slope is documented, not hypothetical, and the expansion occurred through incremental legal and clinical reinterpretation.”

“Healthcare rationing creates implicit pressure on vulnerable patients. In systems with finite resources, a cheap death can become more available than expensive care, and vulnerable people may feel pressured to choose it to avoid being a burden on their families or the system. The choice is not made in a vacuum; it is made under financial and social pressures.”