Assisted Suicide: What Catholics need to know

Working on behalf of the group Compassion and Choices Washington, former Gov. Booth Gardner filed an initiative with the Washington Secretary of State on January 9 that would legalize physician-assisted suicide.  Supporters hope to place the measure on the November ballot. Progress correspondent Jean Parietti met with Dominican Sister Sharon Park, who led statewide efforts in 1991 in opposition to a similar measure, to find out more about the so-called “death-with-dignity” measure.  What follows is a primer for readers of The Progress as state voters are asked to consider changing state law to make it legal for  physicians to help their patients commit suicide.

What does the assisted suicide initiative say?
The “Death with Dignity” initiative would make assisted suicide legal for mentally competent Washington state adults who have no more than six months to live. A patient would ask a doctor to prescribe a lethal dose of medication; the patient would be required to self-administer the drugs. The initiative’s text – based on the Oregon law passed in 1994 – requires verbal and written requests by the patient, a waiting period, two witnesses and two doctors to determine whether the patient has met the criteria. The prescribing doctor would be required to inform the patient of feasible alternatives, such as hospice care and pain control measures. The patient could revoke his decision at any time.

How many signatures are needed?
Supporters need to collect 224,880 valid voter signatures by July 3 to get the initiative on this November’s ballot. The proponents have hired a signature-gathering firm, which means they probably will obtain enough signatures, said Sister Sharon Park, executive director of the Washington State Catholic Conference.

Who is sponsoring the initiative?
A coalition called It’s My Decision. The group is affiliated with Compassion & Choices of Washington, part of the national Compassion & Choices network created in 2005 by the merger of Compassion in Dying and End-of-Life Choices (formerly The Hemlock Society).

Who opposes assisted suicide?
The Washington State Catholic Conference, the voice of our state’s bishops. The Coalition Against Assisted Suicide, has been formed to fight the proposed initiative; the coalition includes people with disabilities, doctors, nurses, hospice workers, people of color, and religious groups.
According to the coalition, the Washington State Medical Association, the Washington Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, and the Washington State Hospital Association do not support assisted suicide. These groups are not presently coalition members.
Earlier this month, Gov. Christine Gregoire said she personally finds it “very, very difficult to support assisted suicide.”

How is this initiative different from the one rejected in 1991?
The 1991 measure – defeated by 54 percent of the voters – would have allowed doctors to give a lethal injection if the patient couldn’t take the drugs. The current proposal requires the patient to self-administer the drugs.

What are some of the concerns surrounding this initiative?
Opponents say that people at the end of life are vulnerable and more susceptible to influences from others. There may be subtle pressure for a person to end his or her life, or terminally ill persons may feel they are a burden to their families. Those without adequate health insurance may feel it’s better to end their lives sooner than to leave their families with a pile of medical bills. Most insurance companies will cover the cost of assisted suicide, Sister Park noted.

If the initiative becomes law, there may be efforts to expand its use, to those who are chronically ill or disabled. Booth Gardner, suffering from Parkinson’s disease, has said he would prefer a more liberal law, but will settle for this as a first step. “The disability community looks at this and they know they are vulnerable,” Sister Park said. “Society already looks at them and says, ‘I don’t want to live that way.’ ” In the Netherlands, doctors have admitted euthanizing some people without their request, and some disabled newborns have been euthanized.

Helping a patient die is a conflict of interest for doctors, who are committed to “do no harm.” Allowing doctors to prescribe lethal drugs can damage the trust between patient and doctor.

Anyone who wants to commit suicide now can do it without a change in the law, Sister Park said. “All of a sudden, we’re going to say we’re going to change the law and allow suicide and have some assistance in it. At the same time, we’re putting at risk people who wouldn’t think of suicide. The function of the law is to protect. Why would we change our law to allow for the potential for abuse?”

Isn’t it true that fewer than 300 people ended their lives under Oregon’s assisted suicide law?
Yes, according to official state reports, which are statistical in nature. Although the law requires doctors to report assisted suicides, there is no oversight. “Nobody has to report it unless they choose,” Sister Park said. In addition, the specific information is confidential – no public access allowed – and records have been destroyed after the annual report is issued. “No one can ever say it went wrong,” Sister Park said.

What’s the real difference between giving a dying person drugs to render him unconscious until death, and allowing a dying person the option of hastening death by taking a lethal dose of drugs?
Intention is the key. Terminal sedation (also called total sedation) “is keeping the person free from pain in their dying process … so they’re comfortable,” Sister Park said. “If they’re in a comfortable state, you don’t keep increasing the dosage because this is the day you want them to die. If you give (the drugs) to them in order to keep them comfortable and they live another week, there’s a huge difference. We know intention makes a difference in our society. The difference between first-degree murder and second-degree murder is intention. Intention is primary for us as human beings.”

What about the argument that religion is just trying to impose its values on others?
“There is no way the Catholic Church is imposing its values. We are just upholding the law,” Sister Park said. “Except in Oregon, it has been (held) in all cultures, for thousands of years, that we do not help people commit suicide.” Rather, she said, the initiative proponents are trying to impose their values on society. “Our value is to look at what is best for this society, and their value is personal autonomy,” she said.
“As a faith community, our goal is not to impose our values. Certainly from our faith we believe that life is sacred, but we also can articulate to a secular society why this particular initiative is not good for society,” Sister Park said. “We know that it is not for the common good that some people can assist other people in committing suicide.”

What can everyday Catholics do to fight the initiative?
Don’t sign the petitions that will be circulated soon. Catholics can also “start talking to their neighbors and start educating them about what the initiative is really about: Allowing your doctor to give you the medication so you can take your own life,” Sister Park said.