Euthanasia is the one cure that ends suffering forever. It is a brilliant invention dating back to around 400 B.C. Euthanasia is a positive solution for the sick because it is humane, the patient makes their own decision, and it is in the constitution.

Euthanasia has a long history that is important to how it became what it is today. Euthanasia comes from the Greek expression “good death” (“Euthanasia”). Euthanasia is painlessly putting to death or failing to prevent the death of somebody from natural causes of terminal illness or incurable coma (“Euthanasia”).
There are three types of euthanasia; Passive, Positive, and Negative. Passive is what most US hospitals use today, they just allow the patient to die. Positive is something that actively causes the death of a patient immediately and negative is the practice of withholding or withdrawing extraordinary means to preserve life (“Euthanasia”). Around 400 BC the Hippocratic Oath was created by Hippocrates (“History of Euthanasia”). The Hippocratic Oath was created for patients who are in the hospital and allow them to trust the doctors to respect them and treat them with the best of their ability. Hippocrates was a practicing physician who was the contemporary of Socrates who was a philosopher in his time (“The Hippocratic Oath”). In the 1930’s, the Euthanasia Society of America was formed in the United States (Rebman 16).
In 1935 England stated positive Euthanasia causes began (“Euthanasia”). Then in 1939 all the way to August 1941 “Kinder Fachabteil” was formed in Nazi Germany and used to euthanize severely disabled children (Rebman 17). When the year 1977 rolled around, California became the first to pass a state law allowing euthanasia called; “Death with-dignity Statue” (“Euthanasia”).
Derek Humphry then took it upon himself in 1980 to form The Hemlock Society which was formed for the avocation of euthanasia. The society works to change the legislature in favor for euthanasia (Rebman 16). In the 1990’s, Dr. Kevorkian assisted many patients in suicide, which made him the main target of the state code in 1992 (“Euthanasia”). The state code was called; Public Health Code. The code disapproved of physician assistance in patient suicide (“Public Health Code”). The next year Derek Humphry wrote a book titled Final Exit, explaining to people how to commit suicide (Rebman 18). Following that in 1998, Oregon legalized Euthanasia (“History of Euthanasia”).

In March 1996 the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit smashed down the law in Washington State that barred doctors from assisting in suicide (Torr 67). Following that one year later the Supreme Court rated overly creative judges of the 2nd and 9th circuits (Torr 69). That same year the Supreme Court banned assisted suicide (“Euthanasia”). Two years later in 1999 Michigan’s Dr. Kevorkian who was now known as known as Dr. Death, was sentenced ten to twenty-five years in prison for his assistance in euthanasia (“History of Euthanasia”). When the year 2000 rolled around, the Netherlands legalized euthanasia and in 2002 Belgium also legalized it (“History of Euthanasia”).

It is inhumane to prolong somebody’s life when they are dying with physical and emotional pain. A doctor declares, “I do not think a patient’s life should be prolonged just to prolong life. Heroic measures are simply not rational or humane” (Rebman 19). It is not humane to make patients who are suffering physically and emotionally live longer just to keep them alive for the sake of it. Patients should not have to bare the pain emotionally of never being able to do things on their own. Patients should also not have to live through life in pain on a constant basis.

If patients who are considering euthanasia have already been diagnosed with a “terminal illness” then doctors should not have the right to decide if they live or not (Torr 26). When the patients are deathly ill, and in massive pain it would be inhumane to prolong their lives. When people have a pet, and it is in pain, they immediately consider putting it to sleep, people should to the same for their family members. If people don’t do the same thing for the ones they love, then it is saying that they love their pets more and don’t want to see them in pain.

Doctors should not have the right to choose if patients live or not. A doctor explains, “One does not try heroics on 99 year old patients, but does not pull out all the stops on children and young adults” (Rebman 21). No matter what age, no one should be a science project without consent. If doctors don’t have to have the consent of patients, they will decide to keep somebody that is already dying and have them die just a bit slower so they can perform tests on them or just let them die slowly to observe them.


People should make the choice to keep on living in the condition they are in or die and end whatever they are feeling. Most people agree that everyone has the choice to live or die and should make it on their own (Rebman 21). When patients are lying in the hospital bed dying and almost vegetables, the patients should have the right to say, ‘Yes, I don’t want to continue on like this’. A patient should also have the right to choose life or death because it is in fact his very own life. The people who are considering euthanasia are the ones who have to deal with the pain of this choice.

When it comes to euthanasia the patient is the one who makes the decision (Rebman 19). The patient is going to know best if he want their life to end. Tests can’t show what the patient’s pain is actually like, all they can do is show how they are doing statistically. In the end people aren’t the one’s to say that the person must live (Torr 66).

“…nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property” (14th Amendment). By a doctor, family member or close friend denying a person death on their request then they are going against their very own constitution. Then by going against the very constitution our nation was founded on they are destroying what the founders of their country wrote for the U.S.
Even by going against the constitution and denying people death they will still find a way to die (Rebman 18). In the year 1991 Derek Humphry the former of The Hemlock Society wrote a book and had it published. The book pretty much told people how to kill themselves once they got out of the hospital (Rebman 18). Since people are going to kill themselves anyway once they get out of the hospitals then the doctors should just give them the Euthanasia. That way, they get what the asked for and there isn’t a big upsetting scene when the commit suicide on their own.

Oregon’s Law is known as the “Dignity Act,” it was created to allow the patient to have assisted suicide. The law states; “...has been diagnosed with a terminal illness that will lead to the death…” (Rebman 20). Not only does the constitution state that people don’t have the right to deny other’s the choice of life but Oregon has a law that allow the patient to have Euthanasia treatment. The law helps the people who are already going to die be given the ability to die quicker with out having to die slowly as originally planned.

Euthanasia is the way to go it is the one way people can guarantee to end their family and friends suffering for good. Euthanasia is a positive solution since it is done in a humane way, it ends the suffering of the sick patients for good, and the patient does make their own decision for life or death. Hence why Euthanasia is a great idea and should be used in hospitals around the world. In the end Euthanasia should be legalized so people can end the suffering of patients who are not going to recover anyway.
Works Cited
“Euthanasia.” Columbia Encyclopedia. (1995). Student Research Center. Ebsco Host. Guyer

High School, Denton, Texas. 7 May 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct
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Assisted Suicide Living Wills Research. (2008). www.Euthanasia.com.
www.Askewers.com. 14 May 2008. <http://www.euthanasia.com/index.html>.
“The Hippocratic Oath.” British Broadcasting Channel (20th August 2003). British Broadcasting
Channel Homepage. www.askjeeves.com. Denton, Texas. 22 May 2008 <http://www.bbc
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“Public Health Code.” Section 333.7333 (2007). Michigan Legislature. Denton, Texas. 22 May
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Rebman, Renée C. Euthanasia & The “Right to Die”. Berkeley Height, New Jersey: Enslow
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Torr, James D. Euthanasia. San Diego, California: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 1999.