SHOULD ASSISTED SUICIDE

BE LEGALIZED?

Most of us fear dying, but a large part of that fear comes from unknown and the worry
that it might be preceded by agonizing pain like a car wreck or bullet wound. If we
knew exactly when we were going to die and knew for a fact it would be painless that
fear would most likely go away. Well established author Terry Pratchett saying pretty
much the exact same thing. After being diagnosed with a rare form of Alzheimers,
the writer became a campaigner for euthanasia. "If you ever see me in a hospital bed,
full of tubes and pipes and no good to anybody, tell them to switch me off."

Most people would be shocked to think economics was a factor in their life or death
decision. However, theres no getting around how expensive end of life care is in
America or any country for that matter. End of life care is often brutal, nasty,
traumatic, and very expensive, putting patients through long stretches of unnecessary
suffering just to give them an extra month or two. Main example being chemo
treatment; when the terminally ill patient undergoing these nasty expensive
treatments, and has repeatedly insisted that theyd rather be dead, you start wondering
if this is worth it. One in every four Medicare dollars spent goes to the five percent of
beneficiaries in the last year of their life. This is an overwhelming amount of debt for
the families of terminally ill individuals, with the care of a single individual at the end
of their life costing an estimated $39,000
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Furthermore, hospitals are being used on people who cannot be cured and for their
own reasons would prefer not to continue living. Allowing such people to commit
euthanasia would not only let them have what they want, it would free up hospitals to
treat people who want to live. Hospitals are overcrowded and have to many patients.
The United States alone had 124 million emergency visits in 2013, Four out of five
were treated and released, while 18.5 percent had problems serious enough to seek
medical attention. About 93 percent were released home, the remainder left against
medical advice, or were transferred. Some of these died, or were referred to home
healthcare. Some argue that they should let those die that do not have a chance of
living. That way there could be more room for patients with conditions that can be
cured.

When people become old and especially when they suffer from terminal illness or
incurable diseases, they still have vital organs which can be donated. If the person dies
naturally and doesnt manage to get the organs donated, then they are of no use. Most
methods of suicide or attempting to cure the illness can also damage the vital organs
which would be of no use to someone desperately awaiting a donation. Euthanasia
allows the patients to die under medical supervision and the healthy vital organs can
be donated to those in need. This can pave the way for a much happier life for not
only the terminally ill patient but also the individual receiving a healthy organ.
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A person who is suffering has the right to choose what should be done with his or her
life. He or she may choose to get treated and has the freedom to not choose treatment.
If treatment is unavailable and a person is unable to bear the pain, then it is his or her
right to end their painful life. Ending such a life in a medically monitored situation is
the most rational thing to do. Instead of people who are suffering every waking
moment ending their lives in brutal or horrifying ways, it is better for a doctor and the
persons family to assist in the process. In simple terms, a person has the right to
decide what he or she wishes to do with his or her life. To question euthanasia would
be to question if a person has the right to decide what should be done with his or her
life. Unless your rights as a U.S. citizen are taken away, euthanasia is a fundamental
right.

Of course, there are those opposed to euthanasia because the idea euthanasia could
lead to the dehumanization of mankind. The sacredness of human life is often viewed
in religious aspects. By this I mean those opposed have the general ideology that it is
not our choice to determine if we live or die. It is Gods choice. A final myth is that
legalizing euthanasia will open the floodgates, leading to a murder happy world where
life gets hard you simply check out. In recognizing the other sides claims these are
quickly squandered by simply doing a cost benefit analysis. In the Netherlands where
euthanasia has been legalized for 20 years now, nearly two-thirds of patients who seek
euthanasia are denied. Because it is strictly governed by medical professionals who
have years of experience and medical training. The truth is in the end it should
ultimately be our choice what we want to do with our body.
There are still heavy discussions around the topic of euthanasia. Both pro and anti-
euthanasia sides have strong points supporting for and against euthanasia. The only
humane choice is to allow individuals who are suffering to choose to end their
suffering. Euthanasia is not about murdering people or things alike, its giving people
and their families a choice. To shorten their suffering and pain while relieving them
from the thought of death and medical cost, or to prolong their sadness with the
inevitable outcome of death. In the end, its their choice. Furthermore, think of the
potential outcomes if we do not allow terminally ill individuals to seek out euthanasia
as a last resort. Sadly, many people turn to grotesque suicide as a last resort because
they have no other option.
Through my research, I have found that Euthanasia is one of society's most widely
and hotly debated issues. It has troubled the court system for entirely too long,
questioning the morality of the issue. It is a never-ending merry-go-round. It has
emptied the wallets of taxpayers and should be stopped dead in its tracks with only
this statement. Let them die. How could one force a person to live in a state where
they are engulfed in misery and endless suffering? The truth is euthanasia has a moral
advantage; by allowing a sufferer to die, who also wishes to end his or her life, the
loved ones and even the medical staff are relieving the person of the pain and
suffering. Euthanasia isnt a matter of being right or wrong. It's sometimes a choice. A
choice that isn't always an easy one.
The topic of government spending on health care. Most of this is based around the fact
that the government has to spend billions of dollars each year to help keep terminally-
ill patients on life support. The United States spends more than $4,500 on each
Americans health bill every month, a figure that is almost double the amount of any
other country. Funding the life-support of many seriously ill patients costs a great deal
of money, around $40 billion a year, and that it might not be very wise for the
government to spend that much money if doctors have already pronounced that a
patient will never recover.
With the conviction of a Baltimore physician, who was accused of assisted suicide.
Dr. Larry Egbert believed that his patients shouldnt have to undergo pain due to their
illness, so he performed euthanasia. He had patients go through agonizing pain; he
decided it was time to end their lifes. Some, believe what this doctor did was wrong,
even though he assisted people to end their pain. They state that they may help a
person take their life, but they make sure that theyre not going through pain during
the process.
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A study that was performed on physician attitudes towards the practice of euthanasia.
The study gave nearly a 1000 physicians a four-section survey that analyzed several
specific variables on their attitudes towards euthanasia, such as the patients disease,
mental state, age, and the physicians area of expertise and religion. The four parts of
the survey basically asked a physician how they would respond to a patient requesting
euthanasia, how the legalization of this practice might affect their careers and personal
life, and some demographic information. After 740 surveys were analyzed it was
concluded that physicians felt better if the request to perform euthanasia came from a
non-terminal patient that had previously left advance directives, rather than from
patients with serious illnesses or injuries. It was also concluded that the specialties and
religions of physicians were directly related to their generalized attitudes