Legalizing Euthanasia Essay, Research Paper

Legalizing euthanasia in the United States gives rights to the people. Rights to those who endure the irrefutable agony of pain and suffering, rights to those who want to be cured of their pain, and rights to those that struggle to end their suffering. Euthanasia is the answer to end their suffering.

Doctors now are practicing passive euthanasia, which is just allowing their patient to stop taking their medication or taking them off respirators and life support. With passive euthanasia the doctors consciously watch the patient suffer in agony until they die. This is legal; ending suffering by means of taking support away is legal.

Active euthanasia is when the doctor gives the patient something to cause their death, but they know that the patient will no longer be suffering and will live in peace until they die. Active euthanasia is illegal. What is the difference? Both put an end to suffering. One is legal, one is not. Passive euthanasia ends the suffering with pain. Active euthanasia ends the suffering and lets them die peacefully.

This has to be changed. Active euthanasia has to be legalized. The government is denying rights promised to the people when our nation was first set up. They have to put an end to the suffering. They have to give people their rights.

People do have the power to commit suicide. Suicide and attempted suicide are not criminalized. Why can’t they just have help from doctors? If someone wants to die they will find a way. Legal euthanasia would make their attempt much easier and less ill natured.

The biggest possible problem in legalizing euthanasia would be the regulation of it. Euthanasia would have to be monitored and each case would have to be looked into before the doctor could administer the injection. If a reasonable regulatory process is used then there is no reason why active euthanasia should not be legalized. People should have the choice to end their life if they are suffering from a painful incurable disease, and euthanasia would give them this choice.