Concerns About California’s New Assisted Suicide Law

The State of California has recently passed the End of Life Option Act, which is set to go into effect in 2016. The new law will legalize physician assisted suicide for people with terminal illnesses. Not everyone is supportive of the new legislation and there have been some that have voiced concerns. This column expresses some of the concerns that critics have over the new law. There are concerns that this new assisted suicide legislation could lead to more elder abuse. Concerns about the level of oversight are also expressed in this column. People that witness a physician assisted suicide could also experience trauma. As this debate over physician assisted suicide continues people on both sides are going present their arguments for and against the new proposals.

See Margaret Dore, California’s New Assisted Suicide Law: Whose Choice Will It Be?, Jurist, October 24, 2015.