What is Oregon Trying to Hide?

A question often asked about assisted suicide is: "Why haven't we heard about any problems in Oregon?"

There are many reasons we haven't heard about assisted suicide abuses in Oregon and the most obvious is there is no designated agency with the authority or funding to investigate abuses.

Another huge problem is poor oversight and management of investigating suicides to determine the cause of death. Death caused by a lethal dose of drugs is classified as poisoning. If the poisoning follows the assisted suicide rules in Oregon it is not consider suicide, but if it’s not clear if it’s assisted suicide it is recorded as a suicide or undetermined cause of death.

In poisoning cases the best way to determine cause of death is by toxicology testing. Oregon is the worst state, of the 13 states surveyed, in doing toxicology testing to determine the drugs used in suicide cases according to the Journal of the American Medical Association article “Toxicology Testing and Results for Suicide Victims – 13 States, 2004.”

CONTROL

Most people have experienced a controlling boss or parent and understand how their obsession to be in control affects everyone around them. People obsessed with the need to control everything have to know how you will manage every detail of all situations. There is no room in their life for natural and spontaneous events. They have to be in control.

So I'm not surprised when I hear assisted suicide supporters talk about their need to control how they die. Of course, in their life death cannot be a natural and spontaneous act... it has to be controlled. Like most people obsessed with control assisted suicide supporters want to delegate responsibility for any actions taken in their controlled and contrived lives. They want to "control" their death but want a doctor to prescribe the lethal dose of drugs so they aren't "responsible" for their death. And, they want their family to support them in their decision and be at their side as the poisons take effect and "hopefully" kills them.

Assisted suicide supporters are so fearful of being held responsible or accountable for their final actions that in Initiative 1000 it requires doctors to falsify the death certificate by citing their terminal illness as the cause of death instead of the lethal dose of drugs. Falsifying the death certificate conveniently prevents public accountability of assisted suicide making it impossible to track whether abuses have occurred.

Let's hope Washington State voters won't satisfy those people's obsession to always be in control.

Assisted Suicide Is Bad Public Policy

Marilyn Golden with the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF) outlines the public policy basis for opposing assisted suicide. Ms. Golden demonstrates the many risks posed to our society by legalizing assisted suicide.

When Assisted Suicide Goes Wrong

Simple Answers

Your mouth waters at the sight of a red ripe delicious Washington apple. The produce manager tells you it's laced with 10 mg of Phenobarbital but it's totally "natural." Of course, you would never believe him.

Initiative 1000, if passed, would change Washington law - Chapter 70 RCW 70.122 - the Natural Death Act to include taking an overdose of Phenobarbital to commit assisted suicide and call it a "natural" death.

Q. How is taking an overdose of a drug that attacks the brain stem closing down the central nervous system while the toxic poisons kill the vital organs considered a "natural" death?

A. It isn't natural.

Mystery Money

The Death with Dignity National Center is going to spend $1.5 million on the passage of Initiative 1000 to legalize assisted suicide in Washington State. Since most of their money is contributed through their 501(c)3 status as a private nonprofit corporation they don't have to disclose the names of their donors.

So, it's hard to know exactly how much of their money comes from high rollers in the insurance and managed care business. Barbara Combs Lee, former Executive Director of Compassion and Choices, is credited for raising enough money to make the organization a force in legalizing assisted suicide. Compassion and Choices and the Death with Dignity National Center are the leading contributors to the Initiative 1000 campaign in Washington State.

Combs Lee is a former executive with Ethnix Northwest Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Aetna insurance.

The question remains: "How much money is the insurance industry contributing to Initiative 1000?"

Assisted Suicide Initiative 1000 Launched

The assisted suicide initiative was launched in Washington State on January 9, 2008. Proponents of assisted suicide during their news conference made morose speeches and recited poetry. Most of the funding thus far for the initiative comes from outside the state.

Washington Not Dead Yet representatives, joined with members of the Coalition Against Assisted Suicide, held a news conference immediately following the remarks made by assisted suicide backers. We educated the media about Oregon's weak safeguards, bogus data, the discrimination underlying assisted suicide, and why assisted suicide is loved by managed care and insurance companies.

Using the same approach as was used in Oregon, they want Washington State voters to believe there are "safeguards"in the initiative when in fact they are no more than mere inconveniences. Proponents expect to raise over $5 million to fund their campaign.