From Your Representative: Physician Assisted Suicide

Do you have a living will? It is the document that tells doctors and your family your wishes relating to life-sustaining treatments. The state of Montana has a form on line that you can download, go have it notarized and then send it to the state.

Then your wishes can be accessed on line, but only by authorized healthcare providers. You can find this form at http://doj.mt.gov. That is our Attorney General's website. But, I urge you to be careful.

There is a huge difference between the living will concept and physician assisted suicide. I attended a conference with doctors, lawyers and legislators, many from our area, about the problems inherent with physician assisted suicide.

First of all, the Montana Supreme Court Baxter decision does not give doctors and others who participate in a qualified patient's suicide immunity from criminal and civil liability. Senator Blewett (D, Great Falls) had a bill to do that this last session and it was defeated.

Warning: legalizing assisted suicide can be a recipe for elder abuse. Elder abuse is on the rise in Montana already. There are two states with legalized physician-assisted suicide, Oregon and Washington. There is no requirement for a witness. An heir could administer the lethal medication and no one would know if the patient agrees at that moment.

There are two known cases where the Oregon Health Plan offered to cover assisted suicide rather than treatment. The Washington statute allows assisted suicide when the patient has only six months to live. What if the doctor is wrong? We all know cases where a person has lived for years longer than they were told. Terminal does not mean dying. We're all terminal!

The suicide rate other than physician assisted is on the increase in Oregon. It seems that legalization has led to general approval. Montana already has higher than average suicide rates and we are especially concerned about suicide among our youth.

I have one more warning. Our Attorney General's website has a link to Compassion and Choices. That's the name of the old Hemlock Society. This organization is promoting assisted suicide. Don't mix up pain treatment with assisted suicide.

So, before you decide what is right for Montana, go to

www.montanansagainstassistedsuicide.org and review the dangers. And be careful when you read the Department of Justice, our Attorney General's, website about end-of-life care.

Please continue to contact me with any problems or questions. My phone is 849-6096 and my email is jannataylor@montana.com. I never forget that I work for you.