Assisted suicide is also called physician-assisted suicide. Assisted suicide involves a doctor administering a lethal dose of medication to a patient who voluntarily accepts to commit suicide. This process must be conducted by a physician. Assisted suicide is not legal in many countries. In the USA, the practice is only legal in Oregon State. Assisted suicide has raised a heated debate on whether it should be legalized or not. Efforts to legalize the practice have raised controversy and it is said that congress could outlaw the practice altogether. There are several arguments for and against assisted suicide.
Assisted suicide should be legalized because it gives people control over their own lives. Assisted suicide is voluntary to patients who have terminal illnesses. Such patients are usually certain that they will die sooner or later. They also undergo excruciating pain, which justifies their decision if they want to end their lives. If patients are fine with the procedure being done on them, it should not be denied. It will be like denying them their rights. Such patients can save themselves from suffering by undergoing assisted suicide to end their lives.
Assisted suicide can be helpful in relieving patients of pain and suffering. Patients who have had accidents or have severe diseases undergo a lot of pain. It is better for such people to take away their lives rather than suffer in hospitals when nothing can be done to reduce such pain. It would also save funds spent on medical bills by their relatives in a situation where they are certain the patient will die soon.
Legalizing assisted suicide would be a good move by the government because it will be a show of concern and responsibility. People who suffer in pain knowing they will die soon deserve what they wish to be given. The right to life is accompanied by the right to die. If someone has the right to live, they must also have a right to decide their destiny. As long as someone is in their right mind and is suffering from terminal conditions, they should decide their own fate. The law should not be used to deny them their wish at a time when they can only benefit from assisted suicide.
Assisted suicide should be legalized because similar cases occur in real life. There are people who refuse to take medication in order to end their lives. This is proof that assisted suicide happens whether legal or not. There is need to legalize the procedure in order to bring it into the open. People should know that they have the freedom to choose what is best for their lives.
In conclusion, governments should legalize assisted suicide because denying people a chance to make personal decisions is like a tyrannical regime. The government can only respect the human rights by allowing people, in their right piece of mind to decide the destiny of their lives. Assisted suicide is ethical in the sense that it helps patients with terminal diseases to make a decision on their future. It will help people save themselves from pain and emotional suffering. The benefits of assisted suicide outweigh the disadvantages hence; legalizing the practice will help make the world a good place.
Works Cited
Snyder, Lois and Arthur L Caplan. Assisted Suicide: Finding Common Ground. Indiana: Indiana University Press, 2002.
Weir, Robert F. Physician-Assisted Suicide. Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1997.
