MAID: Medical Aid in Dying

Table of Contents

Introduction
Pros
- Pro 1: MAID allows terminally ill people to choose a “good death.
- Pro 2: MAID is a matter of bodily autonomy, a right everyone should have.
- Pro 3: MAID ensures thoughtful regulation of the practice.
Cons
- Con 1: MAID dangerously normalizes suicide.
- Con 2: MAID endangers vulnerable groups, including people with disabilities, the elderly, and people of color.
- Con 3: MAID is a slippery slope to legal euthanasia and worse.
Euthanasia & Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) around the World
- Australia
- Austria
- Belgium
- Canada
- China
- Colombia
- Denmark
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- India
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Luxembourg
- Mexico
- The Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Norway
- Philippines
- Portugal
- Russia
- South Africa
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Turkey
- United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, & Wales)
- Uruguay
Religious Perspectives on Euthanasia and Medical Aid in Dying
- Pro: Unitarian Universalist Association
- Unclear: National Baptist Convention
- Unclear: Presbyterian Church USA
- Unclear: United Church of Christ
- Con: Assemblies of God
- Con: Buddhism
- Con: Catholic Church
- Con: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormon Church)
- Con: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
- Con: Episcopal Church
- Con: Greek Orthodox
- Con: Hinduism
- Con: Islam
- Con: Jehovah’s Witnesses
- Con: Judaism
- Con: Seventh-Day Adventist Church
- Con: Southern Baptist Convention
- Con: United Methodist Church
U.S. Medical Aid in Dying Laws
- 0 Federal Laws on Euthanasia and Medical Aid in Dying (MAID)
- 10 States and D.C. in which MAID Is Legal
  - California
  - Colorado
  - D.C.
  - Hawaii
  - Maine
  - Montana
  - New Jersey
  - New Mexico
  - Oregon
  - Vermont
  - Washington
- 40 States in which MAID Is Illegal
Landmark American Euthanasia and Medical Aid in Dying Court Cases
- In re Quinlan: Mar. 31, 1976
- Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Department of Health: June 25, 1990
- Washington v. Glucksberg: June 26, 1997
- Vacco v. Quill: June 26, 1997
- People v. Kevorkian: Nov. 20, 2001
- Bush v. Schiavo: Sep. 23, 2004
- Gonzales v. Oregon: Jan. 17, 2006
Historical Timeline
- 500 BC-16th Century AD
  - 5th Century B.C.-1st Century B.C. - Ancient Greeks and Romans Tend to Support Euthanasia
  - 12th Century-15th Century - Christian Views on Euthanasia Reinforce Hippocratic Oath
  - 13th Century - During Middle Ages Christians and Jews Tend to Oppose Euthanasia
- 17th Century-19th Century
  - 17th Century - Common Law Tradition Prohibits Suicide and Assisted Suicide in the American Colonies
  - 17th-18th Century - Renaissance and Reformation Writers Challenge Church Opposition to Euthanasia
  - Late 18th Century - American Evangelical Christians Reject Suicide and Euthanasia
  - 1828 - First U.S. Statute Outlawing Assisted Suicide Enacted in New York
  - 1870s - Samuel Williams Begins to Publicly Advocate Using Morphine and Other Drugs for Euthanasia
  - 1885 - American Medical Association Opposes Euthanasia
- 1900-1949
  - 1905-1906 - Bills to Legalize Euthanasia Are Defeated in Ohio
  - 1915 - Dr. Haiselden Allows Deformed Baby Boy to Die Rather Than Give Him Possibly Lifesaving Surgery
  - 1917 - The Black Stork Film Causes Controversy over Infant Euthanasia
  - 1930s - Public Support for Euthanasia Increases as U.S. Endures Great Depression
  - 1935 - Voluntary Euthanasia Legislation Society Founded
  - 1936 - Bill to Legalize Euthanasia Defeated in British House of Lords
  - 1937 - Voluntary Euthanasia Act Introduced in U.S. Senate
  - 1938 - National Society for the Legalization of Euthanasia Founded
  - 1940s - Nazi Use of Involuntary Euthanasia Changes Public Perception of Euthanasia in the U.S.
  - 1946 - Committee of 1776 Physicians for Legalizing Voluntary Euthanasia Founded
- 1950-1979
  - 1950 - World Medical Association Condemns Euthanasia; Poll Shows Declining Support for Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - 1952 - Groups Petition the United Nations to Amend the Declaration of Human Rights to Include Euthanasia
  - 1962 - Pauline Taylor Becomes President of the Euthanasia Society of America
  - 1965 - Donald McKinney Becomes President of the Euthanasia Society of America
  - 1967 - First Living Will Written
  - 1968 - Harvard Medical School Committee Defines Irreversible Coma as a Criterion for Death
  - 1969 - Hastings Center Founded
  - 1970s - Idea of Patients’ Rights Gains Acceptance
  - 1972 - U.S. Senate Holds First National Hearings on Euthanasia
  - 1973 - American Hospital Association (AHA) Adopts Patient’s Bill of Rights
  - 1974 - Society for the Right to Die Founded
  - 1974 - First U.S. Hospice Opens
  - Mar. 31, 1976 - Supreme Court Rules in Quinlan Case that Respirator Can Be Removed from Coma Patient
  - Oct. 1, 1976 - Nation’s First Aid in Dying Statute Signed into Law in California
  - 1977 - Eight States Have Right to Die Bills
- 1980-1999
  - 1980 - World Federation of Right to Die Societies Forms
  - 1980 - Hemlock Society Forms
  - May 5, 1980 - Pope John Paul II Issues Declaration Opposing Mercy Killing
  - Dec. 1984 - American Medical Association Supports Withholding or Withdrawing Life-Prolonging Medical Treatment in Certain Circumstances
  - 1987 - California State Bar Becomes First Major Public Body to Support Physician Aid in Dying
  - 1988 - Unitarian Universalist Association Passes Resolution in Support of Aid in Dying
  - Jan. 8, 1988 - Journal of the American Medical Association Publishes Article by Hospital Resident Who Euthanized a Patient
  - 1990s - Public Opinion Surveys Show More Than Half of Americans Support Physician-Assisted Death
  - June 4, 1990 - Jack Kevorkian Participates in His First Assisted Suicide
  - June 25, 1990 - Supreme Court Upholds the Right to Refuse Life Saving Medical Service
  - Nov. 5, 1990 - U.S. Congress Passes Patient Self-Determination Act
  - 1991 - Choice in Dying Formed
  - Nov. 1991 - Washington Voters Defeat Physician-Aid-in-Dying Initiative
  - Nov. 3, 1992 - California Death with Dignity Act Is Defeated
  - Apr. 1993 - Compassion in Dying Formed
  - May 1994 - New York Task Force Publishes Report against Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - Nov. 1994 - Oregon Death with Dignity Act Passed
  - Apr. 30, 1997 - Clinton Prohibits Using Federal Funds for Assisted Suicide
  - June 26, 1997 - U.S. Supreme Court Rules There Is No Right to Die
  - Nov. 1997 - Oregon Voters Keep Death with Dignity Act
  - Nov. 1998 - Jack Kevorkian Assists a Suicide on National Television
  - Nov. 1998 - Michigan Defeats Physician-Assisted Suicide Proposal
  - 1999 - Jack Kevorkian Convicted of Murder
- 2000-2019
  - 2000 - Maine Death with Dignity Act Is Defeated
  - 2001 - Netherlands Legalizes Euthanasia
  - 2003 - Attorney-General Aschroft Challenges the Oregon Death with Dignity Act
  - 2005 - Terri Schiavo Has Her Feeding Tube Removed after Long Court Battle
  - Jan. 17, 2006 - U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act in Gonzales v. Oregon
  - June 1, 2007 - Jack Kevorkian Released on Parole
  - Feb. 19, 2008 - Luxembourg Legalizes Physician-Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia
- Nov. 4, 2008 - Washington State Death with Dignity Act Is Passed
- Dec. 5, 2008 - Montana Legalizes Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - Dec. 31, 2009 - State of Montana Affirms Physician-Assisted Suicide Is Not against Public Policy
  - June 3, 2011 - Jack Kevorkian Dead at 83
  - Nov. 6, 2012 - Massachusetts Death with Dignity Ballot Measure Defeated
  - May 20, 2013 - Vermont Becomes Fourth State to Allow Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - Jan. 13, 2014 - Physician-Assisted Suicide Ruled Legal by New Mexico Judge
  - Mar. 2, 2014 - Belgium Legalizes Euthanasia for Terminally and Incurably Ill Children
  - Feb. 6, 2015 - Canada’s High Court Strikes Down Physician-Assisted Suicide Ban
  - Apr. 30, 2015 - South African Court Allows Assisted Suicide for Terminally Ill Man
  - Aug. 11, 2015 - New Mexico Court Ruling Allowing Physician-Assisted Suicide Struck Down by Higher Court
  - Oct. 5, 2015 - California Becomes Fifth State to Legalize Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - June 7, 2016 - Physician-Assisted Suicide Becomes Legal in Canada
  - Sep. 17, 2016 - First Belgian Minor Granted Euthanasia or Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - Nov. 8, 2016 - Colorado Legalizes Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - Feb. 18, 2017 - D.C. Becomes Seventh U.S. Jurisdiction to Legalize Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - Nov. 29, 2017 - Victoria Becomes First Australian State to Legalize Physician-Assisted Suicide and Limited Euthanasia
  - Dec. 2, 2017 - Nine State Medical Associations Drop Opposition to Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - Apr. 5, 2018 - Hawaii Legalizes Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - Apr 12, 2019 - New Jersey Legalizes Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - June 12, 2019 - Maine Legalizes Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - July 24, 2019 - Oregon Removes Waiting Period for Patients with Fewer Than 15 Days to Live
- 2020-Present
  - Feb. 26, 2020 - Germany Overturns Ban on Organized Assisted Suicide
  - Oct. 16, 2020 - Netherlands to Allow Physician-Assisted Suicide for Terminally Ill Children under 12
  - Oct. 17, 2020 - New Zealand Votes to Legalize Physician-Assisted Suicide for Terminally Ill Adults
  - Jan. 7, 2021 - First People with Non-Terminal Illnesses Undergo Euthanasia in Colombia
  - Mar. 29, 2022 - Oregon Ends Residency Requirement for Physician-Assisted Suicide
  - May 2, 2023 - Vermont Ends Residency Requirement for MAID
  - Nov. 30, 2024 - Members of Parliament Vote in Favor of Legalizing MAID in England and Wales.
Discussion Questions
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