Reject Wisconsin "Death with Dignity" Bill

Brookfield, WI - Pro-Life Wisconsin strongly opposes legislation being circulated for co-sponsorship by Senator Fred Risser (D-Madison) and Representative Frank Bo yle (D-Superior) that would permit physician-assisted suicide (PAS) in Wisconsin .

"In a stark denial of reality, the bill states that taking prescribed medication to end your life does not constitute 'suicide.' If this isn't suicide, I don't know what is," said Peggy Hamill, state director of Pro-Life Wisconsin.

"Assisted suicide, no matter how compassionate it may seem on the surface, is nothing more than a cruel lie," said Hamill. "To the terminally ill, it tells them that there is no meaning to their life and that when they become a 'burden' to others suicide is the easiest answer for everyone. It also robs them of something integral to the human spirit - hope. Real compassion takes time and commitment. It means standing by someone and bearing their burden."

In the State of Oregon , where assisted suicide is legal, Kaiser Permanente Northwest HMO has not merely permitted doctors to assist in patient suicides - it has actively solicited its doctors to participate in this deadly practice. In August of 2002, a Kaiser executive e-mailed a memo to more than 800 Kaiser doctors recruiting PAS-doctor volunteers. According to Portland psychiatrist Gregory Hamilton, MD, this email represents the first step down the slippery slope of killing patients to save money.

"In an age of soaring healthcare costs and cutbacks, how much longer until the 'right to die' becomes the 'duty to die?'" said Matt Sande, Pro-Life Wisconsin's Director of Legislation. "How much longer until those considered a 'burden' on society are systematically denied healthcare and life-saving measures in order to cut costs? The great state of Wisconsin can do better than assisted suicide."

A 2002 study of the impact of Oregon 's "Death with Dignity Act" revealed that ninety percent of Oregon assisted-suicide patients change their minds. According to Dr. Susan Tolle, director of the Center for Ethics in Health Care at Oregon Health and Science University and head of the study, most people who ask their doctor about assisted suicide are simply depressed or fearful of pain. If properly counseled and treated, 90% choose to continue living.

"Right to die" forces routinely speak of patients dying in intractable pain. They call killing oneself a "basic human right" that should be constitutionally protected. Yet medical studies show that virtually all pain can be alleviated at the end of life. A study by the World Health Organization found that 95 to 100 percent of the pain experienced by people at the end of life can be adequately controlled.

"Instead of killing the pain, these 'right to die' activists focus on killing the patient," said Sande. "Few of them seem enthusiastic about educating healthcare professionals about the amazing advances in palliative care."

Source: Pro-Life Wisconsin