WATCH: Medical Experts Debate Ethics, Risks of Legal Assisted Suicide
The conversation on assisted suicide is an important one in the current culture, as assisted suicide is becoming more frequently and popularly accepted in the United States and around the world.
(Oregon Right to Life) — A spirited debate between two medical experts spotlighted the ethics and risks of legal assisted suicide. The conversation made frequent reference to Oregon’s tragic yet precedent-setting assisted suicide law, which took effect nearly three decades ago.
In the 90-minute interview-style debate hosted on The Free Press’s “Honestly” podcast in December, physician, medical ethicist, and professor of medicine Dr. Lydia Dugdale debated the issue with healthcare attorney, clinical ethicist, and professor of bioethics David Hoffman, both of Columbia University.
During the conversation, Dr. Dugdale underscored the fact that new terminology for assisted suicide (i.e., “Death With Dignity” or “Medical Assistance in Dying) cannot change the fact that the practice is still, in essence, suicide. She also emphasized the risks involved in legal assisted suicide – including the potential for abuses, the slippery definition of “terminal illness” in practice, and physicians’ lack of ability to accurately predict life expectancy or diagnose depression.
Frequently referencing Oregon’s 1997 Death With Dignity Act, the first assisted suicide law in the U.S., she pointed out that, of the 607 people prescribed lethal drugs in Oregon in 2024, only three were referred for psychological evaluation.
“Depression is often treatable,” Dugdale said, arguing that the inability of physicians to recognize and diagnose depression can lead to assisted suicide being prescribed in instances where psychological treatment could ameliorate the suffering that may be motivating a patient to seek assisted suicide.
For his part, Hoffman argued in favor of access to legal means of ending one’s life, asserted that safeguards are effective in preventing abuses, and backed the view that assisted suicide in the case of terminal illness is ethically different from other forms of suicide. To support his thinking, Hoffman appealed in part to the thought of utilitarian moral philosopher Peter Singer, who famously stated that he believes it can be ethical not only to kill unborn human beings, but also newborns in the first few weeks after birth.
The conversation on assisted suicide hosted by The Free Press is an important one in the current culture, as assisted suicide is becoming more frequently and popularly accepted in the United States and around the world. In some European countries, recent stories of young people being prescribed legal assisted suicide drugs for psychological conditions have made international news. The reports have sparked renewed concerns among pro-life and disability rights advocates that existing regulations on current assisted suicide laws could be further eroded, leading to a system that increasingly offers death, rather than care, as a solution to physical and psychological suffering.
Oregon was the first state in the U.S. to legalize assisted suicide under the “Death With Dignity Act” (DWDA), and deaths have risen as regulations have been rolled back. In 2023, Oregon saw a sharp 30% rise in DWDA prescriptions and a 20% increase in associated deaths. The data show that spike has been followed by gradual but persistent increases. Patients from out of state now represent a notable percentage of those receiving the lethal prescriptions following the 2023 removal of the state’s residency requirement. 37 people from outside Oregon received DWDA prescriptions last year, representing 6% of the total and an increase from 24 (4%) in 2024.
To date, pending new data, 5,520 people have been prescribed lethal drugs since Oregon’s DWDA took effect, and at least 3,691 people (67%) have died after consuming them, according to the Oregon Health Authority.
If you’d rather listen to the podcast than watch the video, you can find the episode on podcast streaming sources including Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
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WATCH: Medical Experts Debate Ethics, Risks of Legal Assisted Suicide
Ashley Sadler
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(Oregon Right to Life) — A spirited debate between two medical experts spotlighted the ethics and risks of legal assisted suicide. The conversation made frequent reference to Oregon’s tragic yet precedent-setting assisted suicide law, which took effect nearly three decades ago.
In the 90-minute interview-style debate hosted on The Free Press’s “Honestly” podcast in December, physician, medical ethicist, and professor of medicine Dr. Lydia Dugdale debated the issue with healthcare attorney, clinical ethicist, and professor of bioethics David Hoffman, both of Columbia University.
During the conversation, Dr. Dugdale underscored the fact that new terminology for assisted suicide (i.e., “Death With Dignity” or “Medical Assistance in Dying) cannot change the fact that the practice is still, in essence, suicide. She also emphasized the risks involved in legal assisted suicide – including the potential for abuses, the slippery definition of “terminal illness” in practice, and physicians’ lack of ability to accurately predict life expectancy or diagnose depression.
RELATED: Lethal Drug Prescriptions Rose Another 4% in 2025 Under Oregon’s ‘Death With Dignity Act’
Frequently referencing Oregon’s 1997 Death With Dignity Act, the first assisted suicide law in the U.S., she pointed out that, of the 607 people prescribed lethal drugs in Oregon in 2024, only three were referred for psychological evaluation.
“Depression is often treatable,” Dugdale said, arguing that the inability of physicians to recognize and diagnose depression can lead to assisted suicide being prescribed in instances where psychological treatment could ameliorate the suffering that may be motivating a patient to seek assisted suicide.
For his part, Hoffman argued in favor of access to legal means of ending one’s life, asserted that safeguards are effective in preventing abuses, and backed the view that assisted suicide in the case of terminal illness is ethically different from other forms of suicide. To support his thinking, Hoffman appealed in part to the thought of utilitarian moral philosopher Peter Singer, who famously stated that he believes it can be ethical not only to kill unborn human beings, but also newborns in the first few weeks after birth.
The conversation on assisted suicide hosted by The Free Press is an important one in the current culture, as assisted suicide is becoming more frequently and popularly accepted in the United States and around the world. In some European countries, recent stories of young people being prescribed legal assisted suicide drugs for psychological conditions have made international news. The reports have sparked renewed concerns among pro-life and disability rights advocates that existing regulations on current assisted suicide laws could be further eroded, leading to a system that increasingly offers death, rather than care, as a solution to physical and psychological suffering.
Oregon was the first state in the U.S. to legalize assisted suicide under the “Death With Dignity Act” (DWDA), and deaths have risen as regulations have been rolled back. In 2023, Oregon saw a sharp 30% rise in DWDA prescriptions and a 20% increase in associated deaths. The data show that spike has been followed by gradual but persistent increases. Patients from out of state now represent a notable percentage of those receiving the lethal prescriptions following the 2023 removal of the state’s residency requirement. 37 people from outside Oregon received DWDA prescriptions last year, representing 6% of the total and an increase from 24 (4%) in 2024.
To date, pending new data, 5,520 people have been prescribed lethal drugs since Oregon’s DWDA took effect, and at least 3,691 people (67%) have died after consuming them, according to the Oregon Health Authority.
If you’d rather listen to the podcast than watch the video, you can find the episode on podcast streaming sources including Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
News Categories
Never Miss a Story!
Sign up for email updates.
*By clicking submit, you agree to receive email updates, including events and action alerts, from Oregon Right to Life.
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Sign up for email updates.
*By clicking submit, you agree to receive email updates, including events and action alerts, from Oregon Right to Life.
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