Oregon vote may mark watershed for right-to-die debate in Canada, US.

CMAJ · 1995

Where this comes from

Abstract

In November, Oregon became one of the first jurisdictions outside the Netherlands to allow physician-assisted suicide. Voters decided by a narrow 51% to 49% margin to pass a Death With Dignity Act, which allows terminally ill patients to receive a fatal prescription from a doctor after they meet several criteria. Observers note that the act's scope is narrow and that it would not have aided Sue Rodriguez, the British Columbia patient who went to court in an attempt to win the right to assisted suicide.