North Dakota debates assisted suicide bill HB 1415

Alex Schadenberg
Executive Director, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition

The assisted suicide lobby intends to legalize assisted suicide throughout the US. North Dakota is not a state that has debated assisted suicide in the past, but seven legislators have sponsored HB 1415, a bill to legalize assisted suicide in North Dakota.

HB 1415 is similar to the Oregon assisted suicide law.

Several states that have legalized assisted suicide, such as Oregon, Washington State and Hawaii, are now debating the expansion of their assisted suicide laws. If HB 1415 passes the assisted suicide lobby will move to expand it in future years.

The Hawaii assisted suicide law came into effect on January 1, 2019. Only one year after legalizing assisted suicide, the Hawaii legislature debated two assisted suicide law expansion bills and this year Hawaii is debating bill SB 323 to expand their assisted suicide law.

Legalizing assisted suicide gives medical professionals, the right in law, to prescribe lethal drug cocktails knowing that the person intends to use it to cause their death.

State laws should never give anyone the right in law to be involved with causing the death of another person. This is a dangerous public policy.

Links to important articles:

• Assisted suicide bills are not what they appear to be (Link).
  
• 12 myths about assisted suicide and Medical Aid in Dying (Link).
• Oregon 2019 assisted suicide report (Link).
• Washington State debates expansion of assisted suicide law (Link). 
• Hawaii debates bill to expand assisted suicide law (Link).