This is when a doctor prescribes medication, either pill or lethal injection, to a patient that they can take, or choose not to, when they are ready. This method of suicide is legal in only four states so Brittany and her family had to move to legally perform these activities. The four states that have legalized PAS, Montana, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington, enforce strict laws and guidelines on who can and cannot partake in this method of assisted suicide (ProCon.org). Also, physician assisted suicide is said to be better on a doctor 's morals because they do not directly kill a patient; they give them a chance to choose to die with dignity (Worldrtd.net). In contrast, euthanasia is when one person directly gives the suffering patient lethal substances to end their suffering, such as actually inserting the needle. This opens up the gateway for the killing of ill patients so that one could reap the benefits (Ama-assi.org). If the patient is incompetent and someone else gives them injections, the person could avoid murder charges by pleading euthanasia, but there could be no proof for and against the statement. However, PAS is only for mentally and physically competent patients to make that decisions through heavy documentation and should, therefore, be legalized in every …show more content…
However, some might say that the constitution only supports the right to live and assisted suicide takes that away. On the contrary, in the case of Morris v. New Mexico, the court declared that the New Mexico constitution supports having help in suicide as a fundamental right of liberty safety and happiness of a competent person (ProCon.org.). Also, the New Jersey Supreme Court accepted refusal of medical treatment in 1976 and every state has since also. I view choosing to die with dignity as being the same as choosing to refuse or discontinue medical care. They are similar in the simple fact that a doctor has the obligation to save someone’s life, but the patients does not allow the doctor to do his job and both result in death. It is not right to allow someone to refuse treatment and to die an excruciating death when they can legally die a hastened one at their choice. This might appear to be a punishment to someone who is offered help. However, what if there was no help and you were bound to die at some point, such as from a terminal or incurable