Euthanasia: A Person’s Right To Die
Over the past century, we have made great advancements in medicine. From curing diseases to finding treatments for sicknesses that would have caused mass mortality rates long ago. However, not only do we still have numerous diseases we have not cured, but the people who suffer from these illnesses are subjected to a great deal of pain. Those who are greeted with terminal illness should be granted the right to choose whether or not they continue to live because it is cruel to let a person suffer, saves medical expenses, and prevents the patient from living a painful and debilitating life.
To let one suffer in excruciating pain is selfish and cruel. The choice to live or not should belong to only the person themselves and not their doctors, family, or friends. After all, it is the patient's life and no one else can claim to feel their distress. When a loved animal is in pain, we consider it 'humane' to euthanize them to minimize their suffering, yet when a human meets a great deal of agony we debate whether or not to let them choose their death. For example, Danny Bond, a boy from England, was born with several medical problems and never spent more than a few months out of the hospital in his twenty-one years of being. He had only spent two Christmas' and two birthdays at home his entire life and lived in excruciating pain nearly every day. Bond had attempted suicide twice in desperate hopes to alleviate himself from his pain but was not successful. After undergoing over three hundred surgeries, Bond ended up starving himself to death after being denied the right to euthanasia. Danny Bond's case is just one of many whom suffer from conditions and cannot end their pain.
In many cases of terminal illness, death is a more viable option for the victim as it liberates one from the torment and pain they undergo daily. Not only does terminal illness bring physical pain, but causes a great financial burden on the person and their loved ones. Medical expenses often cannot be paid for and leave one in a monetary crisis. If the patient knows that their condition is not going to see any improvement, continuing to pay for treatment is just paying to prolong their suffering. While some may argue that this causes families great grief and loss, it saves them in the long run from the emotional pain of caring for a diseased loved one and from the hefty medical bills that this comes along with.
Imagine being unable to breathe, speak, walk, or perform any other basic human activity without the assistance of a machine or another person. This is the reality for many living with debilitating illnesses. Euthanasia is considered to many as the answer to a better quality of life, especially when there are no alternatives to their pain. Many claim that euthanasia is murder or killing, but it is rather just bringing one's inevitable death closer and allowing them to die with dignity. Others may say that a 'miracle may occur' or a cure could be found in the time the patient is alive, yet studies show that 86% of assisted suicides only advance the patient's death by one week or less. When there is no hope or premise to believe that a person's suffering while be 'cured', it is more practical and humane to let them die with dignity in comparison to live being able to complete no tasks without assistance.
