
The Issue Of Physician-assisted Death Is Now Firmly On The American Public Agenda. Already Legal In Five States, It Is The Subject Of Intense Public Opinion Battles Across The Country. Driven By An Increasingly Aging Population, And A Baby Boom Generation Just Starting To Enter Its Senior Years, The Issue Is Not Going To Go Away Anytime Soon. In Physician-assisted Death, L.w. Sumner Equips Readers With Everything They Need To Know To Take A Reasoned And Informed Position In This Important Debate. The Book Provides Needed Context For The Debate By Situating Physician-assisted Death Within The Wider Framework Of End-of-life Care And Explaining Why The Movement To Legalize It Now Enjoys Such Strong Public Support. It Also Reviews That Movement's Successes To Date, Beginning In Oregon In 1994 And Now Extending To Eleven Jurisdictions Across Three Continents. Like Abortion, Physician-assisted Death Is Ethically Controversial And The Subject Of Passionately Held Opinions. The Central Chapters Of The Book Review The Main Arguments Utilized By Both Sides Of The Controversy: On The One Hand, Appeals To Patient Autonomy And The Relief Of Suffering, On The Other The Claim That Taking Active Steps To Hasten Death Inevitably Violates The Sanctity Of Life. The Book Then Explores Both The Case In Favor Of Legalization And The Case Against, Focusing In The Latter Instance On The Risk Of Abuse And The Possibility Of Slippery Slopes. In This Context The Experience Of Jurisdictions That Have Already Taken The Step Of Legalization Is Carefully Reviewed To See What Lessons Might Be Extracted From It. It Then Identifies Some Further Issues That Lie Beyond The Boundaries Of The Current Debate But Will Have To Be Faced Sometime Down The Road: Euthanasia For Patients Who Are Permanently Unconscious Or Have Become Seriously Demented And For Severely Compromised Newborns. The Book Concludes By Considering The Various Possible Routes To Legalization, Both Political And Judicial.
This book investigates the ethical, legal, and social complexities surrounding the legalization of physician-assisted death. L.W. Sumner, a philosopher specializing in bioethics, provides a structured analysis of the arguments defining this public debate. By examining the intersection of patient autonomy, the sanctity of life, and the practical risks of policy implementation, the author establishes a framework for evaluating the morality and feasibility of assisted dying practices.
What You Will Find
Scope Limits
Experts recognize this work as a balanced and accessible primer for those seeking to understand the ethical landscape of end-of-life policy. Readers frequently note the clarity of the author's prose, which successfully distills complex bioethical arguments into a coherent framework for public discourse.
Page Count:
256
Publication Date:
2017-01-01
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
ISBN-10:
0190490195
ISBN-13:
9780190490195
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!