BMJ, doi: 10.1136/bmjusa.02010006, (Published 4 September 2002)

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Justice Department attempts to override Oregon's Death With Dignity Act

Editorial BMJ USA p 16

Charles Marwick, Washington, DC
The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

This article originally appeared in BMJ USA

In early November, when Attorney General John Ashcroft issued an order authorizing legal action against physicians who intentionally prescribe lethal drugs for terminally ill patients to assist in their suicide---thus effectively overruling Oregon's Death With Dignity Act---the outcry was predictable. Those opposed to physician-assisted suicide applauded; supporters of "death with dignity" were vocal in their criticism.

For example, Fred Richardson, board chairman of the Hemlock Society, wrote a letter to President George W Bush protesting the action. The Society's President, Faye Girsh, described the order as "an unfortunate step backward." Subsequently, at a press conference, the Society charged that Ashcroft was denying hopelessly ill individuals "the option of a peaceful, dignified death." The Hemlock Society, based in Denver, Colorado, is one of the largest activist groups promoting the concept of "death with dignity."

Ashcroft's action, published in the November 9, 2001, Federal . . . [Full text of this article]
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