Deadly meds debated for the terminally ill
Washington asks voters to decide end-of-life issue

By The Associated Press Comments 0
Published: October 12, 2008
Modified: October 17, 2008 at 2:32 pm

OLYMPIA, Wash. — The emotionally charged battle over end-of-life decisions has taken to the airwaves as Washington state voters decide whether to allow doctors to prescribe lethal medication to terminally ill patients.

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The proposal

Initiative 1000 mirrors the Oregon law, which took effect in 1997, and would allow the terminally ill to obtain lethal prescription drugs for ending their own lives. But it would not allow doctors to administer lethal drugs on behalf of patients who couldn’t do so themselves. Any patient requesting the fatal medication would have to make two oral requests, 15 days apart, and submit a written request witnessed by two people.

Recent TV and radio ads by opponents feature actor Martin Sheen, who calls the measure a "dangerous idea” that could be used by the most vulnerable in society. Supporters are on TV with an ad spotlighting a widow who says it lets those who are suffering have control over their final days.

With both sides having raised a combined $3.5 million, much of it still unspent, more ads are expected in coming weeks.

The measure would allow physicians in Washington state to help terminally ill patients end their lives. Oregon, where voters first approved the idea in 1994, is the only state with such a law.

The measure is opposed by religious groups.