The Governor of Nevada has defeated an attempt to remove end-of-life protections from the vulnerable.
Joe Lombardo vetoed Senate Bill 239, which would have legalised assisted suicide by allowing medics to give lethal drugs to adults deemed to be terminally ill.
In a statement to the Senate, the Governor highlighted that “expansions in palliative care services and continued improvements in advanced pain management make the end-of-life provisions in SB 239 unnecessary”.
‘Inherent value’
Lombardo added: “Given recent progress in science and medicine and the fact that only a small number of states and jurisdictions allow for similar end-of-life protocols, I am not comfortable supporting this bill.”
Denise Burke, of US religious liberty group Alliance Defending Freedom, thanked the Governor for vetoing the “dangerous legislation”.
She stated: “Every life is sacred and has inherent value. Physician-assisted suicide is neither compassionate nor an appropriate solution for those who are suffering — it ends an innocent human life without justification.”
‘Love and support’
In the UK, a palliative care expert has warned that legalising assisted suicide would have “profound negative repercussions to good medical care” in this country.
In an interview with a University College London student’s podcast, Dr Nicholas Herodotou, who is an honorary lecturer at the university’s medical school, debunked claims that assisted suicide gives people a dignified death, saying “killing someone does not given them dignity”.
He explained that in places like Oregon where assisted suicide is legal most people do not want to be killed because of unbearable pain, which palliative care addresses, but for reasons such as “loneliness” and “a sense of loss”. He added: “They need support and love and care and that’s why the UK has the best palliative care in the world.”
The House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee is currently hearing evidence on the role of medics in assisted suicide, and eligibility criteria for such services in England and Wales.
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