Over the past two decades the phrase “right to die” has become more and more common within the floor of numerous states’ Congresses. The right to die is a movement to legalize both physician assisted suicide and euthanasia in the United States for patients who are deemed terminally ill with the high possibility of a slow and painful death. These patients can therefore pass on their own terms and as peaceful as possible. The topic within itself can be a very sensitive matter with many heartbreaking facets. Today, only five states plus the District of Columbia have passed legislature regarding the right to die. By looking at the success of other countries, patients’ personal accounts, and past court cases we can see that the right to die should be legal in all states. This is not a debate about conflicting political views but a debate about giving control and dignity back in the hands of the people. Every American deserves the right to have control over their own life.

The difference between physician assisted death or suicide versus voluntary active euthanasia can fall within a blurry, undefined area. According to the World Federation of Right to Die Societies, “Physician-assisted suicide entails making lethal means available to the patient to be used at a time of the patient’s own choosing. By contrast, voluntary active euthanasia entails the physician taking an active role in carrying out the patient’s request, and usually involves intravenous delivery of a lethal substance.” Therefore, the action of physician assisted suicide involves a doctor’s judgement of the patient’s condition. If they are deemed both mentally competent and terminally ill with the likelihood of gruesome suffering, physicians are legally allowed to prescribe life-ending drugs to the patient if desired. Similarly, voluntary active euthanasia requires a physician for both the judgement of the patient and acquiring of the life-end drug. But the act of physical injection into the patient is completed by the physician. Legislation has been brought to the debate floor of many states’ Congresses regarding both processes.

Even though this issue has become more prominent in the United States within the last two decades, citizens hailing from various countries around the world have been making progress with this issue for over half a century. For example, Switzerland legalized physician assisted suicide back in 1942. And it hasn’t stopped there, around the world various legal actions have been taken within different countries’ governments. In addition to Switzerland, eight more countries have legislation in place that legalizes physician assisted suicide, including Belgium, Canada, Columbia, Germany, Japan, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, and South Africa. Currently, six countries, Belgium, Canada, Columbia, Japan, Luxembourg, and The Netherlands have decriminalized euthanasia, with the act still remaining illegal in two of those countries. The other four countries that have legalized voluntary euthanasia are Belgium, Columbia, Japan, and The Netherlands. 

The terms “decriminalize” and “legalize” can often get confused. Meriam-Webster Dictionary defines decriminalization as, “Removing or reducing the criminal classification or status of; especially to repeal a strict ban while keeping under some form of regulation.” This is separate from full legalization where there would be zero punitive measures taken against those who partake in the act of voluntary euthanasia. If an action is decriminalized but a citizen is found engaging in that specific act, penalties could include a monetary fine or any lesser punishment than a criminal charge and jail time. That being said, each foreign countries’ laws are unique. 

Due to a rather recent ruling, physician assisted suicide is legal in South Africa. The case of Stansham-Ford v. the Minister of Justice and Correctional Service & Others ruled that the options Mr. Stansham-Ford, a terminal ill patient, were left with weren’t ideal but to allow him to commit suicide could be violent and cruel. The judge ruling on this case referred to Canadian common law when making his decision. Canadian common law states that the act of euthanasia is illegal but physician assisted death was favorable compared to the effects and act of normal suicide. This groundbreaking case is the first in Africa’s history to rule in favor of the right to die, let alone to make this process legal.

Yet South Africa is not alone in the process of legalization of right to die statues. Belgium has already had statues in place for physician assisted suicide and in 2002, euthanasia for mentally competent and terminally ill diagnosed adults and emancipated children was legalized. Twelve years later in 2012, the lower house of Belgian Parliament historically passed a bill applying to minors. With parents’ discretion, Belgian minors are now allowed to utilize euthanasia by lethal injection if wanted. Even though this extremely progressive law is definitely on more of the radical end of the spectrum when regarding euthanasia laws across the globe, it showcases how favorable a government can be to offer alternatives for its citizens.

As for in the United States, in 1997 two major cases were brought before the Supreme Court, Washington v. Glucksburg and Vacco v. Quill. Both cases ended up as overall defeats for the right to die movement, stating that physician assisted suicide violated the Constitution’s Fourteenth Amendment. But the Supreme Court did side with the right to die movement when upholding Oregon’s 1994 Death with Dignity Act. Oregon was the first state to implement any type of legislature regarding the right to die. In 2001 this piece of legislation was threatened when Gonzales v. Oregon was brought before the United States Supreme Court. Attorney General, Gonzales, believed these set of laws violated the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. The bench ruled 6-3 in favor of the state of Oregon and the right to die movement. 

You can be presented with numerous court cases and flooded by new articles but you may never think that you could connect to any of these stories on a personal level. But what if a terminal disease effected someone that you love? What if they live in a state where the right to die is legal and this loved one must let the infectious disease take its’ toll instead of having other, more peaceful options? What if the “what ifs?” become a reality? Unfortunately, this is a surreal reality for so many families across the United States. 

For the family of twenty-nine-year-old Brittany Maynard, this became their reality when she was diagnosed with aggressive stage IV brain cancer that would ultimately lead to her death. She was given only a couple months to live even after partaking in numerous treatment options. Maynard decided she would like to utilize Oregon’s right to die law and be in control of her passing instead of dying an agonizing, prolonged, and imminent death. In those months between diagnosis and her passing, she advocated for the Death with Dignity campaign and partnered specifically with the Compassion & Choices foundation. This relationship has been maintained even after her passing to further help those in the same position as Brittany once was. 

Even though Maynard ended up having control over her life and ultimately made the final decision, that does not mean it was easy. Maynard lived in California with all of her family but at the time, physician assisted suicide and euthanasia for the terminally ill was against the law in her home state. Instead of being able to live out her last days in her own home, Maynard’s husband and she were forced to relocate to Oregon where physician assisted suicide was legal. Since her passing, Maynard’s husband has devoted his life to living out her legacy by telling her story and encouraging other states, including California, to pass death with dignity laws. Along with the help of Compassion & Choices, Maynard’s husband and parents helped push a bill through their home state legislature. The Death with Dignity Act was enacted into California state law in October 2015 and went into effect in June 2016.

On the contrary, a former United States Marine named JJ Hanson was diagnosed with the exact same, crippling brain cancer as Maynard in 2013. Hanson was given four months to live and he too, sought numerous forms of treatment. He chose to not partake in physician assisted suicide and let the disease take its course. But as of January 2016, twenty months have passed and Hanson is alive, well and in remission. He has since spoke out against Maynard’s public suicide and activist lifestyle during her final months. Hanson stated that referring to this action as “death with dignity” is insulting and therefore sets a bad example for those faced with terminal illness. He believes that this act is nothing but trying to justify suicide so one can say they died a noble death. 

The number of states that have passed the Death with Dignity act continue to rise years after Maynard’s death. These states are giving its citizens a second option during dire times, like Maynard hoped for. As of February 2017, five states plus the District of Columbia have written this bill into law. Separately, the state of Montana made headlines in 2009 when Baxter v. State of Montana was brought before the Montana Supreme Court. The Court ruled 5-2 in favor of passing the Rights of the Terminally Ill Act which allows terminally ill and mentally competent patients to be given life-ending prescription by a physician. This pivotal court case marks the first state to legalize physician assisted suicide by a court ruling since the state had previously had zero provisions in place regarding the right to die. The other five states with these statues were all presented and debated within each state’s Congress and therefore decided by legislation. In its own House sessions, Montana lawmakers have introduced Death with Dignity laws several times since 2009, only to be defeated every time. 

One of Compassion & Choices’, along with the Maynard family, main beliefs is the idea that patients and their immediate families shouldn’t have to move away from their support systems midst such crucial times. When the patient needs positive encouragement the most, they are forced to relocate to a new state just to carry out what they believe is their basic human right. Maynard herself selflessly said, “I did this because I want to see a world where everyone has access to death with dignity, as I have had.” The Maynard family wants to carry out Brittany’s legacy and therefore believes that every patient should be able to make these life changing decisions in the comfort of their own home. This is why they want to extend the Death with Dignity Act to all fifty states.

Formally, the Death with Dignity laws simply states, “to allow mentally competent adult state residents who have a terminal illness with a confirmed prognosis of having 6 or fewer months to live to voluntarily request and receive a prescription medication to hasten their inevitable, imminent death.” This way, patients are given the option of a more peaceful passing if desired. One specific thing the Death with Dignity laws clarify is that these statues call for the legalization of physician assisted suicide but do not reference euthanasia. These set of laws also require at least two physicians to validate the well-being of the patient; physically, mentally, and state of voluntariness.

But what provision protects patients from a trusted physician that abuses his or her power? On November 22, 1998, 60 Minutes aired like any other Sunday except this episode featured Dr. Jack Kevorkian and his “suicide machine”. A retired pathologist himself, crossed the line when he recorded himself euthanizing Thomas Youk, a sufferer of Lou Gehrig’s disease. This videotape aired on national television for all of America to witness. Yet this was not the first time Kevorkian played a role in the death of terminally ill patients. He admitted to assisting in the suicides of over 130 people but this was the first time he ever personally conducted the lethal injection. Except this wasn’t the first time he made headlines either. 

Dr. Kevorkian first made headlines when he assisted the suicide of Janet Adkins who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. She was a member of the Hemlock Society, an organization that supported euthanasia for terminally ill patients. Adkins initially reached out to Kevorkian when she heard about his experience, along with a handmade contraption dubbed the “suicide machine”. This machine was made up of $30 worth of random parts in which he collected from his own home and garage sales. It included an IV containing the lethal dosage of poison that could kill anyone if they so desired. Dr. Kevorkian brought his “suicide machine” to Adkins in a Michigan park. After her death, it was brought to attention that Adkins was not yet ill but still utilized Dr. Kevorkian’s machine, claiming the opposite and that she was indeed already deemed terminally ill. 

Due to the indecisiveness among Michigan legislature, charges were dropped against Dr. Kevorkian for the murder of Janet Adkins. But the state of Michigan didn’t let this stop them from taking some sort of action against him. Later that year, Dr. Kevorkian was banned from using his precious “suicide machine” and even got his medical license suspended. Yet that didn’t slow him down, he simply created a new contraption called the Mercitron. This machine utilized a carbon monoxide gas mask instead of a lethal injection. For the next decade, the state of Michigan tried and tried to stop Dr. Kevorkian in his tracks but the best they could do was jail him two separate times. Nothing could stop him until his episode of 60 Minutes aired.

Death is a painful thing, physically and mentally exhausting. Seeing a man publically euthanized on national television was not a comfortable thing to watch. Dr. Kevorkian abused his power and the trust of his patients. At the time of this incident, physician assisted suicide nor euthanasia was legal in the state of Michigan. Therefore, Dr. Kevorkian was charged with the second-degree murder of Thomas Youk. The following year Dr. Kevorkian was found guilty, convicted, and sentenced to a maximum of twenty-five years in prison along with a hefty fine. Even though, Dr. Kevorkian clearly overstepped his boundaries and abused his medical powers, this is not a common occurrence. With each new piece of legislation that is proposed before Congress, it is open to scrutiny. The actions of Dr. Kevorkian set back the right to die movement in the legislation process for a little less than a decade. This all turned around when Washington became the second state in 2008 to pass Death with Dignity statues, legalizing physician assisted suicide. 

But why stop there? If changes are not made within legislature across the U.S., Americans will continue to suffer without a second option. It is the patient’s choice and not a lawmaker’s. Foreign countries’ success, former patients’ testimonies, and court cases across the United States all demonstrate the need for legislation in favor of the right to die. In the words of Brittany Maynard herself, “I won’t live to see the death-with-dignity movement reach critical mass, but I call on you to carry it forward.” This is important because every citizen has the basic human right of power over their own life and should be able to control how they pass when faced with such grieve circumstances.
