New Jersey approves bill allowing terminally ill patients the right to die
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) on Monday announced he will approve a bill that allows physicians to provide lethal prescriptions to terminally ill patients who want to die.
“Allowing terminally ill and dying residents the dignity to make end-of-life decisions according to their own consciences is the right thing to do,” Murphy said Monday. “I look forward to signing this legislation into law.”
Shortly before his statement, the New Jersey state Assembly passed the “Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act” in a 41-33 vote on Monday, according to NJ.com.
The state Senate reportedly passed the bill in a 21-16 vote minutes later.
Susan Boyce, a 55-year-old woman from Rumson who has been diagnosed with a terminal autoimmune disease, told the local publication that she has been “working on this quite a while.”
Boyce, who needs an oxygen tank in order to breathe, said that having the law is “something I want the option of.”
“I don’t know what’s in store for me,” she said.
During a debate prior to the vote, state Assemblyman Jay Webber (R) called on his colleagues to delay the vote on the measure.
“Once you cross this line, Mr. Speaker, there is no going back,” Webber said, according to the NJ.com.
Webber argued that some elderly people support assisted suicide because they don’t want to be a burden to their family and friends.
“Don’t make the right to die an obligation to die,” he said.
However, state Assemblyman John Burzichelli (D), who co-sponsored the legislation, argued that the state has enough safeguards in place to protect those most vulnerable.
“The right of self-determination stands firms no matter what … we control our destiny,” Burzichelli said.
The legislation will go into effect four months after being signed by Murphy.
Filed under: General Problems
They are ok with assist suicide but won’t give pain meds so we won’t be in pain so we won’t want to die!!! This is America darn it. No one should be made to suffer in pain that they want to die!!!this itself should show everyone the real antiopiate agenda.They want all pain patients dead!and I can’t believe the medical community that say they use science to be ok with this. The medical community alone should have stopped this before it started.now they are being targeted too. And instead of standing on science and beside the patients most seem to be on the bandwagon . I can’t believe with all data showing that ods are from illegal street drugs and always have been that government and some in medical community are still going after legal life giving pain meds!!! This is insanity!! Pain patients can’t even find an attorney to get this crap in court!! This targeting of pain patients is against the constitution!!!!
Well if the person is terminal. That is one think but you will find more people turn this way because pain is not being treated even for hospice patients. Basically you will have elderly patient doi g this because they feel a burden and pain helps make that happened. However the DEA is going after doctors who prescribe opiates for pain even when it is the only thing that may work for many people in severe pain. This is nothing more then making those who have painful disabilities kill themselves instead of treating there pain. Basically if you need surgery you better talk to your surgeon for pain control because most doctor will not prescribe opiates even after surgery and BCBS is actually paying surgeons up to 30% more for there surgery if they do not give a patient a opiate prescription
Basically insurance companies have way to much power and are denying medication even on there formulary and saying a diabetic patient does not need insulin and will tie it up in prior authorization that can take months for decision. Meanwhile if it a drug you need for your life you get to pay out of pocket even though you may spend $1000’s in healthcare premiums each year
Yep, making it easier to kill yourself. Let’s make it even cheaper and just have those legislators go to the nearest homeless camp or gang member & buy a supply of heroin or fentanyl! It’s really easy!
Hey, in Oregon it’s already a lot easier to get meds to suicide on than to live a decent life on…they’re more happy to pay for the meds for people to kill themselves with, too. And since they’re about to ban all pain meds for all chronic pain patients, the number of people they’ll get to kill off is going to go drastically up. Much cheaper that way.
Well a death with dignity is needed. I offer that the Attorneys General need to hate opiates all the way to pocket enough of the settlement money Purdue is handing over to get that house in the Caymans they all want. To bad money can’t buy love though. Silly, blood soaked Attorneys General.
yeah, Oregon is all for death with dignity. They just refuse to allow life with dignity. I’d rather be able to live decently than have my only recourse be to kill myself; if I could get proper pain management I’d probably have decades more of functional life…I’m not even 60 yet.