The Right to Die Movement, Essay Example

The “Right to Die” movement is highly controversial. Many people believe that people should be allowed to elect the right to die with dignity if they are experiencing high levels of pain and suffering. These individuals believe that this is the only ethical action and prolonging the lives of terminally ill people that wish to die is contributing to large amounts of pain. On the other hand, those that oppose this concept believe that life is precious and that medically assisted suicide should therefore not be allowed. These individuals are worried that people will abuse this right and many lives will be ended unjustifiably as a result.

Brittney Maynard’s case is an excellent example of why medically assisted suicide should be allowed. She demonstrated that because she was unable to end her life, she was required to live a painful existence. In fact, she wrote several articles encouraging politicians to pass the “Death with Dignity” act (Maynard, 2014). It was unfortunate that the law required her to do so. Instead of fighting for the rights of terminally ill patients, she should have been allowed to make her own decisions about her life, under the careful guidance of her doctor.

Many states have legalized medically assisted suicide, although there are stringent requirements and regulations. This model has been put in place to ensure that all individuals that end their lives though this method are in their right minds and definitively want to go through this process to end their pain and suffering. Terry Schiavo, an individual in a similar place as Maynard, has also advocated for this legislation (Sanburn, 2015). “Death with Dignity” states that the request for medically assisted suicide must be made in writing over several weeks to ensure that this is a consistent desire. In addition, it must be medically warranted. This model, which is currently used in states like Washington, would benefit people around the world because it works to ensure that these deaths could occur if and when the patient is certain of this decision.

References

Maynard, B. (2014). My right to death with dignity at 29. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/07/opinion/maynard-assisted-suicide-cancer-dignity/

Sanburn, J. (2015). How Terri Schiavo Shaped the Right-to-Die Movement. Retrieved from http://time.com/3763521/terri-schiavo-right-to-die-brittany-maynard/