Not Dead Yet logoApril 15, 2024 To: California Senate Health and Judiciary Committees From: Diane Coleman, JD, President & CEO, Not Dead Yet Re: Letter Opposing Proposed SB 1196 Amendments to the End of Life Option Act This letter is filed on behalf of Not Dead Yet, a national disability organization headquartered in New York with members in California. We oppose the SB 1196 amendments to the California End of Life Option Act for several reasons. ELIGIBILITY: First and most importantly, the proposed amendments provide for a greatly expanded eligibility for receiving a lethal prescription ..read more

[Editor’s note: Not Dead Yet endorses and is supporting this film project.] By Joan Cavanagh, Member, Progressives Against Medical Assisted Suicide Public discussion about the realities of Medical Assisted Suicide (MAS) is critical. The practice is increasingly becoming normalized as a “health care” option and already inadequate safeguards and restrictions in existing laws are being eroded, so much so that even those who have previously advocated for it are having second thoughts. At this important potential turning point in public understanding, Progressives Against Medical Assisted Suicide ..read more

Our good friends at Not Dead Yet UK got some significant coverage including photos in the Big Issue publication last month. Big Issue Group describes itself as media and other “initiatives under a shared mission to create innovative solutions through enterprise, to unlock social and economic opportunity for the millions of people in the UK living in poverty.” The article is entitled “Assisted dying: The right to die shouldn’t only be for the rich. But could legalising it harm the poor?” It fairly extensively covers both sides of the issue. Below are the NDY UK excerpts from the text: Dennis Qu ..read more

It’s more than a name – Stop Assisted Suicide Illinois! Here are two recent SASI efforts with disability leaders in the forefront opposing the state’s assisted suicide bill. First, a press conference lead off by Access Living’s Amber Smock: And a powerful op-ed in the Chicago Sun Times by the former executive director of a center for independent living in the greater Chicago area, Pam Heavens: Illinois should not legalize ‘physician-assisted suicide.’ There’s too much potential for abuse. On July 26,1990 President George H.W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA. This histo ..read more

Three days ago, Amber Smock, Vice President of Advocacy at Access Living, was quoted extensively in a Chicago Tribune article about Illinois’ assisted suicide bill. Today, the editorial board of the Tribune took a position opposed to the bill. The March 5th article, “Should Illinois become a ‘right-to-die’ state? Lawmakers consider end-of-life option for terminally ill adults,” covered both sides. Here is the segment giving Access Living’s perspective as a disability rights organization: Yet some disability rights advocates warn that the measure could put vulnerable populations at risk, includ ..read more

[Jules Good’s op-ed below was published Feb. 27th in the New Hampshire Union Leader.] Jules Good (they/them)Disabled need help living, not help dying AS NEW HAMPSHIRE considers legalizing assisted suicide, also referred to as medical aid in dying (MAID), I would like to draw attention to the potential impacts this bill could have on disabled and other marginalized residents. I was 19 years old the second time I attempted to die by suicide. I had just been diagnosed with a chronic but not life-threatening illness, I had rapidly lost about 70% of my hearing in the middle of completing a music de ..read more

By Anita Cameron Anita Cameron As we celebrate the contributions of the Black community to American history it’s important to know and understand racial disparities in healthcare, its history, the impact it has on the Black community and why Black people, particularly disabled people, must fight against assisted suicide. There is a long and shocking history of medical abuse and experiments on the Black community, fueled by racism and stereotypes, that has led to, and continues to spur, disparities in healthcare. From the earliest days of this nation, Blacks have received abysmal treatment at t ..read more

By Lisa Blumberg Lisa BlumbergThe broadening of eligibility under the Canada’s euthanasia law to include people who are deemed to suffer from “untreatable mental illnesses” has been delayed once again. The expansion had been scheduled to take effect in March. According to the New York Times, the postponement occurred because a parliamentary committee concluded that there are not enough doctors, particularly psychiatrists, in the country to assess patients with mental illnesses who want to end their lives and to help them do so. The Canadian Health Minister Mark Holland stated that “the system ..read more

Alex Thompson (NY Assn. on Independent Living) and Max Rodriguez (Center for Disability Rights) had a ten minute interview with Capital Tonight’s Susan Arbetter. Detailing weaknesses of the purported “safeguards” in the state’s assisted suicide bill, they urged the legislature to reject it as too dangerous. Key concerns focused on insurance pressures to cut costs and the healthcare system’s failure to meet people’s needs for treatment, care and related supports. The Capital Tonight broadcast video and article are HERE and excerpts from the accompanying article are also copied below. Members of ..read more

On February 8, the Maryland Senate’s Judicial Proceedings Committee held a public hearing on a proposed assisted suicide bill (SB0443). That morning prior to the hearing, the Patients Rights Action Fund organized a press conference of opponents. Anita Cameron represented Not Dead Yet and made the following compelling arguments against the bill. Anita Cameron’s Press Conference Remarks I’m Anita Cameron, Director of Minority Outreach for Not Dead Yet, a national disability organization opposed to medical discrimination, healthcare rationing, euthanasia and assisted suicide. SB 0443 will put sic ..read more