Proposed Act Has Not Advanced Past Committee

The proposed Medical Aid in Dying Act, which had sought to legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia in New York State, was first introduced in the New York State Senate by former Staten Island Sen. Diane Savino, — and in the Assembly by Westchester County Assemblymember Amy Paulin, — during the 2015-2016 legislative session. 

The legislation has never advanced past the committee state in either the New York State Senate or Assembly.

Letter to the Editor: Euphemisms Abound

To the Editor:

We wish to respond to Dr. Barry Perlman’s letter to the editor: “A vote for Medical Aid in Dying is not a vote for suicide” (May 28, 2024) He presents his case well. However, we take issue with his reasoning.

Euphemisms abound about this subject: physician-assisted suicide, death with dignity and physician-assisted dying. No matter how the concept is dressed up, it is suicide by the patient and murder by the doctor. Whoever else has been directly or indirectly involved in the demise of the patient are accessories.

S2245C/A995C, the [New York State] Medical Aid in Dying Act, must be voted down by our elected state senators and Assembly members. We can guarantee that in the future there will be abuses of this, regardless of limitations put in place in the legal package. 

James D. Dooher

K. Theresa Dooher 

https://www.syracuse.com/

New York Bar Association and Medical Society Ignore Dangers of Legalized Assisted Suicide

By Lisa Blumberg (pictured here).

The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) adopted a resolution in 2023 that supports the provisions of the assisted suicide bill before the legislature. This position is based on a report by its Task Force on Medical Aid in Dying. The report is extensive but seems more of defense of assisted suicide rather than a balanced inquiry into the myriad issues raised by its legalization.

During the summer last year, Not Dead Yet had learned of the NYSBA Task Force and requested an opportunity to speak to which the chair replied, “I'll be in touch a little later to settle on date for you to visit.” Sometime later, NDY inadvertently learned that David Leven, a leader in End of Life Choices New York, made a presentation to the Task Force. Rather than scheduling a comparable opportunity for opponents, the Task Force scheduled an open forum in November with a limited number of slots and did not notify the NY Alliance Against Assisted Suicide, a coalition of doctors, disability advocates and other opponents of assisted suicide laws. By the time word reached the Alliance, only three speaking slots remained available, the rest (over 20) taken by proponents. Later in December, another panel of prominent assisted suicide advocates presented to the Task Force but, once again, no expert panel from the opposition.

"My Mum Didn't Die"

Good morning. I’m Anita Cameron, Director of Minority Outreach for Not Dead Yet, a national, grassroots disability organization opposed to medical discrimination, healthcare rationing, euthanasia and assisted suicide.

Assisted suicide laws are dangerous because though these laws are supposed to be for people with six months or less to live, doctors are often wrong about a terminal diagnosis. In 2009, while living in Washington state, my mother was determined to be at the end stage of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. I was told her death was imminent, that if I wanted to see her alive, I should get there in two days. She rallied, but was still quite ill, so she was placed in hospice. Her doctor said that her body had begun the process of dying.

Though she survived 6 months of hospice, her doctor convinced her that her body was still in the process of dying, and she moved home to Colorado to die.

My mum didn’t die. In fact, six weeks after returning to Colorado, she and I were arrested together in Washington, DC, fighting for disability justice. She became active in her community and lived almost 12 years!

The Final Countdown to Euthanasia?

By Lisa Blumberg

The usual line of the organizations promoting the legalization of assisted suicide (or medical aid in dying (MAID) as they like to call it) in New York and elsewhere is as follows: the sole reason for such laws is to prevent “end of life” suffering, that the laws only apply to people close to death and contain stringent guidelines. Moreover, they claim, in states which have such laws, there have never been abuses, meaning assisted suicide laws are safe.

Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia Will Be Practiced Through the Prism of Social Inequality and Bias

  

By Kathryn Lopez

When Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s father, Mario, was governor, the New York State Task Force on Life & the Law released a report in 1994 unanimously rejecting assisted suicide, and cautioned: “No matter how carefully any guidelines are framed, assisted suicide and euthanasia will be practiced through the prism of social inequality and bias that characterizes the delivery of services in all segments of society, including health care. The practices will pose the greatest risks to those who are poor, elderly..." 

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Bevelyn Beatty in NYC: "Take Your Country Back"

Watch video here

Slow Euthanasia: No One to Blame for Andrew Cuomo Putting 6,000+ Coronavirus Patients in Nursing Homes

https://www.frontpagemag.com/point/2020/07/cuomo-no-one-blame-me-putting-6000-coronavirus-daniel-greenfield/

by Daniel Greenfield

"Hi Bob, got a question for you."

"Yes, Andy."

"How many thousands of nursing home patients can you kill before it impedes your presidential chances?"