Bolstered by the U.S. Supreme Court's upholding of Oregon's assisted suicide law last month, co-authors of California's controversial "Compassionate Care" legislation are confident they will gain enough legislative votes to get their bill to the governor's desk this year.
That optimism is premature, say opponents, who nonetheless admit that the effort to defeat this bill will be difficult and, in all likelihood, fraught with emotion, given the nature of the legislation.
AB 651, the "Compassionate Care Act," heads to the Senate Judiciary Committee next month. If the bill passes in the Senate --- a 50-50 proposition according to Carol Hogan, lobbyist for the bishops' California Catholic Conference --- it will be returned to the Assembly for concurrence.
"My sense is that legislators wish that Assembly Members Patty Berg and Lloyd Levine (co-authors of AB 651) would go away in an election year," Hogan commented.
Senator George Runner (R-Antelope Valley), who has signed a letter of opposition to physician-assisted suicide along with all the members of the Senate Republican Caucus, said he believes AB 651 has enough Senate support to pass since abortion rights legislators "view this issue through the same basic lens." According to Senator Runner, "if we are able to defeat this, it will be in the Assembly."
The day after Gov. Schwarzenegger said voters, not legislators, should decide if physician-assisted suicide should be legalized during an appearance before the Sacramento Press Club, Assemblywoman Nicole Parra (D-Handford) issued a statement Jan. 25 reaffirming her opposition to assisted suicide measures.
"I do not support physician-assisted suicide…In order to properly approach this issue, I feel strongly that public input must be earnestly sought. We are extremely far from reaching and, certainly, from surpassing the information-gathering threshold we need to reach, so that we might make the most representative and accurate decisions possible on such a sensitive subject," said Parra.
Assemblywoman Cindy Montañez (D-San Fernando) said Jan. 30 her position also has not changed since she voted last April 12 against physician-assisted suicide as part of a nine-member Assembly Judiciary Committee. (The bill passed on a 5-4 vote with Montañez breaking rank with five fellow Democrats to side with three Republicans in opposition).
"While the Oregon law has survived a legal challenge before the United States Supreme Court, that ruling has done nothing to change my position on this bill," said Montañez. "I do not believe the state should be in the business of sanctioned suicides. There is a better way. Improving and expanding hospice programs and end-of-life services acknowledges the sanctity of life while ensuring dignity, care and love at the end of one's life."
Montañez believes most members of the legislature made their decision last year based on personal beliefs but conceded that this year's upcoming debate in the Senate, and, possibly, back again in the Assembly is still going to be difficult.
"It's going to be a tough fight," agreed Parra. "The issue of physician-assisted suicide is a deeply personal and emotionally powerful topic to discuss and contemplate. It conjures up memories of painful experiences from the past and it makes even more challenging the experiences of those caring for terminally-ill loved ones now.
"It is important the issue is approached with the utmost sensitivity and care out of respect for both terminally ill individuals and their families. It is also essential for state government to actively reach out to the people of our state in order to accurately gauge whether or not this is a policy that Californians desire to see enacted."
Parra is concerned about the possibility of assisted suicide coercion, especially in her district with its large working poor population. "A lot of sick people would feel they were a burden to their family," said Parra.
James Feloney, MD, an internist on staff at Providence St. Joseph Hospital in Burbank, said legalizing physician-assisted suicide would erode the doctor/patient relationship. "People have the right to know their doctor is doing everything to help them," said Feloney. He believes the majority of terminally ill patients requesting physician-assisted suicide are suffering from depression, which can be treated.
A member of the California Medical Association which opposes physician-assisted suicide, Feloney anticipates heated discussion in the legislature on this issue which crosses moral, legal and ethical boundaries. "I'm sure it's not a slam dunk," said Feloney.
Tim Rosales, spokesperson for Californians Against Assisted Suicide, is confident that as people get educated about the nuances of the bill, they will reject it. "This bill permits doctors to prescribe legal doses of lethal drugs. It's not about improving end-of-life care. It's something very different," said Rosales.
"People who have strong beliefs that we need to preserve the sanctity of life have to make their positions clear to the legislature," said Montañez. She advises Californians to contact their legislators with their concerns about end-of-life issues. "Killing oneself is not the solution we want," Montañez declared. |