Physician Assisted Suicide: Ethics, Legality, and Halakha

Physician Assisted Suicide: Ethics, Legality, and Halakha - Feb 23, 2020 - In August 2019, the New Jersey State Legislature passed the Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Act, becoming the ninth state in the U.S. to legalize physician assisted suicide (PAS). This law gives suffering patients the autonomy to relieve their suffering and control the circumstances of their death, but may clash with physicians’ responsibility to act according to the principles of beneficence and non-maleficence. During this panel, Dr. Susan Cohen will discuss the medical ethics of PAS and the physician-patient interaction during end-of-life care. Assemblyman Gary Schaer will present the legal arguments that arose for and against the law in the NJ State Assembly. Finally, Rabbi Daniel Z. Feldman will explore the halakhic aspects.