Old Dominion House Bill 62


By: Morgan Broom

            Avery Dick from YMCA-Woodlawn aims to legalize the medical practice of Assisted Suicide with House Bill 61. According to Delegate Avery, the current law states that assisted suicide is considered murder.” Avery and her bill partner, Emma Janks were inspired to propose this bill to the personal interaction that Emma experienced watching a family member suffer form a terminal illness. Delegate Avery Dick stated that watching those you love go through an illness causes one to struggle to “remember how they were before.” She claims that denying humans the right to choose life or death is cruel and “subjects them to suffer” for the rest of their lives. Delegate P.J. Barua agrees with this bill because she “would rather not see someone she cares about in pain” and that she would hate to watch her family members pass away but definitely does not want to watch them suffer.
            During chambers on Friday afternoon, Delegate Avery Dick responds to a question about the cost of this treatment by informing us in the chamber that “one 10mg dosage of this treatment costs $124” and that the state pays nothing towards that cost. She also defines the process of undergoing a terminal illness as “detrimental to the soul”. Most people in the Old Dominion House agreed with the statements; however, Abigail Cooper brought up a personal story about a friend who had an accident and got quadriplegia and turned his life around and even took up new hobbies such as painting. Abigail claimed that by providing this procedure and option “takes away the chance” for a patient to make something good out of their situation.
            In committee, Emma Jenks informed the room that over a million die a “slow and painful death” and reassured everyone that the process to gain consent to go through with the procedure. When asked for the qualifications for undergoing the procedure. The patient must make a request for the assisted suicide pill or the injection then gain acceptance from the doctor and a family member. She also answered, when a senator asked if the patient has the ability to opt out of the procedure, that “the patient can change their mind up until the very last minute”.  After much debate, this bill was passed out of committee on Friday night.

            

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