Dr Philip Nitschke holds up a drug testing kit which is used as part of assisted suicides; Credit: Matt Cardy/Getty Images
Terminally ill Brittany Maynard has become the face of the right-to-die movement. Tomorrow is the day she tentatively set to take her own life. However, she says she's feeling well enough to hold off a while longer.
Maynard, a 29-year-old woman with stage 4 malignant brain cancer, has publicly declared that she would take her life in the manner of her choosing. She moved to Oregon from California in order to take advantage of their laws regarding the taking of one’s life and committed to her “death with dignity” for November 1, two days after her husband’s birthday.
After completing her bucket list, which included visiting the Grand Canyon, she has decided to postpone the decision to end her life. She wrote on her website, “I still feel good enough and I still have enough joy and I still laugh and smile with my family and friends enough that it doesn’t seem like the right time now.” She also noted that as the seizures worsen and she loses autonomy over making decisions for herself, she would again come closer to her final day.
What are considerations one must make when considering to end his/her life? Is the time right for Californians to vote on allowing doctors to prescribe lethal quantities of drugs to terminally ill patients?
Guest:
Melissa Binder, Faith and Values reporter for The Oregonian in Portland, Oregon who’s been following the story