Euthanasia

Legal Decisions

• Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Department of Health U.S. Supreme Court (1989).  Nancy Cuzan's parents asked the court for the legal authority to remove their daughter (who was in a persistent vegetative state) from artificial life support.
  
  
• Washington, et al., Petitioners v.  Harold Glucksberg et al.  U.S. Supreme Court  (1997).  Court makes a similar finding as in the previous case.
  
  
• Amicus brief in both of the previous cases.  Several prominent philosophers support a "right to die."
   
• Gonzales v. State of Oregon.   The decision by the US Supreme Court upholding the constitutionality of Oregon's Death with Dignity Act.
  
  
  

Other links

• Belgian Euthanasia Act 
   
• Belmont Report.  The principal document governing the treatment of human subjects of research.  Many of these principles and insights may be relevant to debates about euthanasia.  The staff member primarily responsible for writing the report was Tom Beauchamp, one of the authors in this section.
   
• Bioethics.net.  Home of the American Journal of Bioethics.
  
  
• Breaking bioethics news from MSNBC. Interesting current developments. Updated daily.
  
  
• Biomedical and Health Care Resources.  Nice links to various resources, from the University of British Columbia.
  
  
• Center for Bioethics at the University of Minnesota.  Includes several good publications on matters of health care, especially at the end of life.
   
• Death with Dignity.  Site devoted to legalizing physician-assisted suicide.
  
  
• Euthanasia.com.  A group opposed to all euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide.
  
  
• Hemlock Society. The oldest and largest "right to die" organization.
   
• National Right to Life
  
  
• Links to some religious discussions of euthanasia.
  
  
• multiple links about physician-assisted suicide, from Longwood College.  Includes substantial information on, and links about, the Oregon law permitted physician-assisted suicide.
  
  
• "On the Value and Inviolability of Human Life."  A papal statement on euthanasia and other related matters.
   
• Oregon's Physician-Assisted Suicide Law.  Copy of the law (click on "Legislative Statute."  Details on who has used physician-assisted suicide during the four years since the law's passage, and, perhaps more interestingly, why
   
• Terri Shiavo.  Links to numerous information about the cases, including links to many of the court documents, and most interestingly, to the Guardian ad litem report and the official autopsy.
  
  
• "Until Medical Bills Do Us Part."  A New York Times guest editorial exploring the costs of our current health care system on our families.
  
  

Philosophical essays and interviews

• Beauchamp, Tom L. "Physician Assisted Suicide."  A radio interview on the topic of Beauchamp's essay included in this volume. [RealAudio]
  
  
• Ezekiel Emanuel. "Whose Right to Die?" The Atlantic Monthly (1997). Ezekiel explains his misgivings about legalizing physician-assisted suicide.
  
  
• Hardwig, John. "Is There a Duty to Die?" Originally published in Hastings Center Reports.  Also hear a radio interview with Hardwig on this topic. [RealAudio]
   
• Hardwig, John. "What about the Family?" -- the Role of Family Interests in Medical Decision-Making" Originally published in Hasting Center Report.  Argues that the wishes and interests the family should play an important role in medical decisions, including decisions about euthanasia.
   
• Rachecls, James.  The End of Life: Euthanasia and Morality.  Oxford University Press.  [The entire book is available online.]
   
• Rachels, James.  "Killing and Letting Die."  In the Encyclopedia of Ethics, (eds) Becker and Becker.
  
  
• Suber, Peter. "Against the Sanctity of Life."
   
• Taylor, James Stacy.  "Autonomy in Moral and Political Philosophy" [and its implications for euthanasia].
  
  
• Young, Robert. "Voluntary Euthanasia."  Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
  

back to the home page