Adrian Houghton states that assisted dying takes place without patient consent in Oregon. There is no evidence to support this assertion, nor have any such cases been reported since assisted dying was legalised in 1997.
It is illegal for a doctor in Oregon to assist someone to die without their full consent and without ensuring that the strict eligibility criteria and safeguards are met.
Research tells us that in the UK approximately 2,500 deaths attended by a medical practitioner per year are as a result of voluntary or non-voluntary euthanasia. In this light, a safeguarded assisted dying law can be seen to apply crampons rather than skis to the so-called ‘slippery slope’. There is no logic in the argument that safeguards would increase the numbers of illegal cases. Furthermore, in Oregon assisted dying has been legal for 15 years without the dire consequences Dr Houghton predicts – there has been no relaxation or expansion of the safeguards, nor has there been an explosive increase in cases.
In the UK the call for the legalisation of assisted dying is for terminally ill adults with mental capacity only. The draft Bill recently published for consultation by proponents of change is similar to the Oregon system, where assisted dying counts for approximately 0.2% of all deaths per year.1 Based on this number, we can estimate that there would be approximately 1,000 (out of 500,000 total deaths) cases per year in England and Wales. Many thousands more would be given the opportunity to openly discuss the option, but would not go on to have an assisted death.
Competing interests:
Steering group of Health Professionals for Assisted Dying
Rapid Response:
Re: Abortion reform’s lessons for assisted dying
Response to Abortion reform’s lessons for assisted dying by Adrian M Houghton.
http://www.bmj.com/content/345/bmj.e4539?etoc
Adrian Houghton states that assisted dying takes place without patient consent in Oregon. There is no evidence to support this assertion, nor have any such cases been reported since assisted dying was legalised in 1997.
It is illegal for a doctor in Oregon to assist someone to die without their full consent and without ensuring that the strict eligibility criteria and safeguards are met.
Research tells us that in the UK approximately 2,500 deaths attended by a medical practitioner per year are as a result of voluntary or non-voluntary euthanasia. In this light, a safeguarded assisted dying law can be seen to apply crampons rather than skis to the so-called ‘slippery slope’. There is no logic in the argument that safeguards would increase the numbers of illegal cases. Furthermore, in Oregon assisted dying has been legal for 15 years without the dire consequences Dr Houghton predicts – there has been no relaxation or expansion of the safeguards, nor has there been an explosive increase in cases.
In the UK the call for the legalisation of assisted dying is for terminally ill adults with mental capacity only. The draft Bill recently published for consultation by proponents of change is similar to the Oregon system, where assisted dying counts for approximately 0.2% of all deaths per year.1 Based on this number, we can estimate that there would be approximately 1,000 (out of 500,000 total deaths) cases per year in England and Wales. Many thousands more would be given the opportunity to openly discuss the option, but would not go on to have an assisted death.
Competing interests: Steering group of Health Professionals for Assisted Dying