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HB140 is invites FRAUD and puts the most vulnerable at risk for abuse when they need protection the most.  No independent witness is required for when the patient takes the suicide pills. There is no way to prove that the person took the pills on their own. Who would know if a relative or caregiver administered the lethal drugs? Please vote NO on HB140 Assisted Suicide.

Suicide is not healthcare! It is not the prescription for pain relief. Delaware’s health care system should focus on using and improving techniques to relieve pain and suffering, rather than taking the shortcut of simply ending patients’ lives. Furthermore, pain is not the main reason that patients choose assisted suicide. Oregon data from 2020 cited “loss of autonomy and dignity” and “fear of burdening loved ones” as the main reasons for assisted suicide. Legalizing assisted suicide says that some lives are not valuable. Please vote no on HB 140.

HB 140 will allow lethal doses to be offered to those with “terminal” illnesses, but “terminal” includes the most common and easily treatable diseases, like diabetes. Even in the case of more drastic conditions, terminal diagnoses are often wrong; individuals can live much longer than their original prognosis predicts. According to Dr. Kaye’s testimony at the House committee hearing for HB 140, physicians have been wrong about terminal diagnoses over 66% of the time. Please vote NO on HB 140.

HB 140 is filled with opportunities for ABUSE. There is no way to track the disposal of the unused lethal drugs. To make matters worse, this bill allows the lethal drugs to be distributed by mail. What happens if the lethal pills are lost in the mail, fall into the wrong hands, or improperly disposed? The only person who could be charged with improper disposal of the unused drugs would be dead! Vote no on HB 140 to prevent the circulation of these lethal drugs.

Assisted suicide creates a culture where there is more incentive to kill than to care. This will destroy the integrity of the medical system that is designed to save life rather than end it. The American Medical Association says, “Physician-assisted suicide is fundamentally incompatible with the physician’s role as healer, would be difficult or impossible to control, and would pose serious societal risks. Instead of participating in assisted suicide, physicians must aggressively respond to the needs of patients at the end of life.” Please vote NO on HB 140.

HB 140 says that a psychiatric evaluation is optional before prescribing the death pills. How would we know that a person making the permanent decision to end their life is not operating under coercion or from mental health struggles such as depression? This highlights the fact that HB 140 endangers those most vulnerable, both mentally and physically, by prescribing death rather than care. Say no to HB 140 and protect those in need of mental healthcare.

Legislation like HB 140 divides families and forces decisions that are not based on true care. Oregon data from 2020 cites “loss of autonomy and dignity” and “fear of burdening loved ones” as the main reasons that people choose suicide. Assisted suicide as part of Delaware’s healthcare system will create an automatic incentive to pressure patients to end their lives instead of fighting for it. Vote NO on HB 140.