"Do or Refer": Proponents Show Their True Nature

Margaret Dore, Esq., MBA

By Margaret Dore Esq., MBA

The Massachusetts bill seeking to legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia as traditionally defined, includes a provision requiring doctors to "do or refer," i.e., to perform assisted suicide or euthanasia, by prescribing and/or administering the lethal dose, or to make an effective referral to another doctor, who will do it.  (H 1194 Sec. 15(4)(a) & (b)(iv)).*

The significance of do or refer is that it's anti-patient, by not allowing doctors to use their best judgment for the patient.

"If Dr. Stevens had believed in assisted suicide, I would be dead."

Jeanette Hall and her son Scott in 2000.

By Jeanette Hall

I live in Oregon where assisted suicide is legal. Our law passed in 1997 by a ballot measure that I voted for.

In 2000, I was diagnosed with cancer and told that I had 6 months to a year to live.  I knew that our law had passed, but I didn’t know exactly how to go about doing it. I tried to ask my doctor, Kenneth Stevens MD, but he didn’t really answer me. In hindsight, he was stalling me.

'Death With Dignity' or Pressuring the Ill to Die

Representative Denise Provost,
John Kelly and other
disability activists

"State Representative Denise Provost (D-Somerville), who opposes the bill, posited in her testimony that the committee should refer the proposal to the Joint Committee on the Judiciary 'since we would be changing the criminal laws of the commonwealth.'” 

To read the full article, click here. 

Michelle Carter Convicted of Involuntary Manslaughter Due to Assisting Suicide of Conrad Roy

Conrad Roy III

NPR  A Massachusetts judge has found Michelle Carter guilty of involuntary manslaughter after, prosecutors say, the then-teenager sent a fellow teenager text messages that urged him to commit suicide.

Juvenile Court Judge Lawrence Moniz decided the case, which Carter had opted to be heard by a judge rather than a jury. Even before Moniz read his verdict Friday, Carter, 20, was weeping and holding a tissue in the courtroom. The judge agreed with prosecutors that Carter's "wanton and reckless conduct" had resulted in the death of Conrad Roy III.

John Kelly, Boston Based Disability Rights Activist, Published in New Mexico

Assisted suicide bill - it deserved to die

John Kelly

http://www.santafenewmexican.com/opinion/my_view/reader-view-assisted-suicide-bill-it-deserved-to-die/article_249e9f50-bd12-5cd1-ba9c-33f689ca9534.html

By John Kelly | Posted: Monday, March 20, 2017 7:00 pm

Thanks to the state Senate’s rejection of the assisted suicide bill, Senate Bill 252, residents of New Mexico can breathe easier. As Sen. Craig Brandt said during last week’s debate, “This bill is dangerous. Doctors make mistakes every day.”

Worldwide Theatre Protest: 'Me Before You' Paints Dangerous Picture of Disabled Life

BY JOHN KELLY

"It was heartening at our protests to receive
so much support from moviegoers and passersby."

Every evening for the past month, you’ve been able to watch me get euthanized at the Regal Fenway Stadium 13. Not to worry, it’s my choice, and neither fantastic wealth nor mutual love with a beautiful woman dissuade me.