Dear Editor: Right to Medical Aid-in-Dying

Dear Editor,

The Montana Legislature is considering a bill to prohibit medical aid-in-dying. Senate Bill 136 declares that doctors who provide this end-of-life option for certain terminally ill patients can be prosecuted for homicide, like murderous felons. SB 136 recently passed the Senate and is now in the House.

Under a 2009 State Supreme Court ruling, medical aid-in-dying was found legal in Montana. The term refers to the process by which a doctor writes an oral prescription for a patient who (1) is an adult, (2) has been diagnosed as terminally ill (likely to die within six months), (3) suffers great pain, (4) asks the doctor for medication that will allow them to die a peaceful death, (5) demonstrates mental clarity, and (6) has the ability to ingest the medication themselves. The doctor is not forced to write the prescription; a pharmacist is not forced to fill it; and most importantly, the patient is not forced to request such medication or take it.

My mate died nearly sixteen years ago of Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS). Sadly, palliative care measures proved insufficient to relieve his suffering. Since the Montana Supreme Court had not yet ruled on the matter of medical aid-in-dying, Dick did not enjoy the peace of mind that having an appropriate prescription at his bedside would have given him. He suffered horrific pain until his last 24 hours. Several days prior to his death, he weakly asserted, "This is no longer Life."

Please help keep medical aid-in-dying legal in Montana!

Contact the members of the House Judiciary Committee ASAP. Call the State Capitol switchboard at (406) 444-4800 during normal business hours, M-F. Leave a short message for the House Judiciary Committee regarding SB 136. Urge Committee members to vote NO.

Please also contact your individual Representative. Either use the same phone number above, or send a note directly to your Representative's email address.

DORIS FISCHER

Sheridan, Montana