Veronica Guerrero
Val Ierley
Legalizing Euthanasia
Euthanasia has become a hot-button topic in recent years. (Define euthanasia, current legal status, and cite) Politicians, pastors, and patients alike have been debating every angle of the issue, from whether physicians can be trusted to provide enough quality-care to what God would think. Legalizing euthanasia grants terminally-ill patients the right to die, preserves their dignity, and relives insufferable pain.
First, euthanasia should be legalized to grant terminally ill patients the right to die. (Explain what is right to die, why it matters to people, and cite) Opponents express fear that legalized euthanasia will lead to a Nazi-like system where the government decides who can live or die, (Mollering, 1974) but that’s already what’s happening when keeping euthanasia illegal forces people to live and suffer beyond their wishes.
The preservation of a patient’s dignity is another primary reason why euthanasia needs to be legalized. A study examining actual patients determined that just a few of the losses that patients face include their independence, dreams, routines, and roles (Mak, 2005). Being terminally-ill and unable to care for themselves cause a patient to become increasingly reliant on others for every little thing, like dressing, bathing, and going to the bathroom. These are basic functions that people are used to performing in private, and when forced to have someone else help, patients must resign themselves to a total loss of dignity. That prospect is extremely depressing, and patients face death afraid and powerless (Mak, 2005). People should have the freedom to preserve their dignity and identity by ending their lives before becoming a shadow of their former self. It is not only good for the patient, it is good for the family members who want to preserve the best memories possible of their dying loved one (Mak, 2005).
Finally, euthanasia should be legalized in order to relieve insufferable pain. Just like people should have a choice about lengthening their time with loved ones or not, they should have a choice about how much pain they can endure. The issue of insufferable pain is the most common reason why any person would consider euthanasia (Mollering, 1974). However, opponents to euthanasia say that situations where a patient’s pain is truly “unbearable” are rare (Emanuel, 1999). Newer and better medications administered by a professional should be able to negate the need for euthanasia justified by pain (Mollering, 1974). The problem with this argument is that it reduces pain to a merely physical experience. Opponents often separate “pain” from “suffering,” and say that because suffering is subjective, it can’t really be factored into the euthanasia discussion (Emanuel, 1999). However, even if a patient is numbed by painkillers, they are still burdened by intense fears, regrets, and final desires all determined by how they’ve lived their lives (Mak, 2005). The weight of those concerns may not be calculable, but for a dying patient, they may well be unbearable. That discernment should be left up to the patient; they should have the choice to relieve their suffering through legalized euthanasia.
Individual rights are critical to today’s society and ensure that people can live as they choose, provided they aren’t harming others. However, euthanasia has been off-limits even for the terminally-ill. If society’s aim is to ensure the best for its citizens, euthanasia needs to be made legal. Without legalized euthanasia, a person’s wishes are undermined by the government, which effectively decides who will and who will die. Keeping euthanasia illegal also robs a dying patient of the right to preserve their dignity, since a slow death only makes a patient more and more vulnerable and less of who they were in life. The last concern is that of pain and suffering. While medication can numb a patient’s physical pain, it cannot alleviate the psychology suffering that is often more overwhelming than tangible symptoms. If nothing else, legalizing euthanasia forces the medical community to improve their end-of-life care beyond keeping just a person’s body alive, if they want to discourage euthanasia (Mak, 2005). Ultimately, terminally-ill patients (along with their families) should be entrusted with their own deaths. They understand the seriousness of the issue, and should at the very least be offered a choice.
References
Emanuel, E. J. (1999). What Is the Great Benefit of Legalizing Euthanasia or
Physician‐Assisted Suicide? Ethics, 109(3), 629-642. doi:10.1086/233925
Mak, Y. Y., & Elwyn, G. (2005). Voices of the terminally ill: Uncovering the meaning of
desire for euthanasia. Palliative Medicine, 19(4), 343-350.
doi:10.1191/0269216305pm1019oa
Martin, B. (2013). In search of gentle death: The fight for your right to die with dignity.
Prometheus, 31(1), 75-77. doi:10.1080/08109028.2012.745960
Moellering, R. L. (1974). Mercy killing or the right to die with dignity. Currents in Theology And
Mission, 1(3), 98-101. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
