CV NEWSFEED // Catholics bishops in California have released a statement condemning the latest expansions being proposed with regards to the state’s assisted suicide laws.
In a March 21 news release, the California Catholic Conference (CCC) announced that “it is vehemently opposed” to the recently proposed bill, SB 1196, that would eliminate critical safeguards and requirements for those seeking assisted suicide.
The current End of Life Option Act requires patients to be residents of California, who have been “determined by their attending physician to be suffering from a terminal disease.” The proposed amendment would eliminate the residency requirement and replace the term “terminal illness” with “grievous and irremediable medical condition,” that causes “physical or psychological suffering.”
The amendment most notably extends assisted suicide access to patients who suffer from early to mid-stage dementia, “while the individual still has the capacity to make medical decisions.”
CCC Executive Director Kathleen Domingo observed in the release that the new bill “eliminates all of the potential ‘safeguards’ that were originally put into place when the End of Life Option Act was initially approved.”
Domingo emphasised that allowing dementia patients and others struggling with psychological illnesses access to assisted suicide “opens up incredibly vulnerable people to the possibility of coercion or worse.”
“SB 1196 puts vulnerable patients at risk and violates the trust of fellow legislators who initially voted in favor of the Act because it was narrowly written and contained a sunset date,” Domingo continued, referring to the original Act’s January 1, 2031 expiration date.
Furthermore, the CCC also noted in the release that California state law prevents people who have cognitive disabilities from receiving the death penalty, while SB 1196 allows people with the same cognitive disabilities access to lethal drugs outside of prison.
“Suicide rates in California continue to skyrocket in vulnerable communities,” said Domingo, concluding:
At a time when CA is reeling from medical and mental healthcare scarcities, introducing a bill inviting a vast population to consider suicide is like adding gasoline to a wildfire.
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