Three-to-one support in two polls sends strong message to lawmakers
Most Minnesotans agree that terminally ill adults should have the option of medical aid in dying, according to two State Fair polls conducted by the Minnesota State Senate and State House of Representatives. In the Senate poll, 68 percent of respondents said they support medical aid in dying; in the House poll, support is 67 percent. In both polls, only small minorities (22 percent) opposed this end-of-life option.
The polling results are significant because the Compassionate Care Act (SF 1880/HF 2095) was introduced in 2015 and will be introduced again in 2017.
“This polling is a clear signal for state lawmakers that their constituents want the option of medical aid in dying so that terminally ill adults with no hope for a cure can choose to shorten the dying process should their suffering become unbearable,” said Janet Conn of Edina, a longtime Compassion & Choices supporter and advocate.
The Minnesota Senate’s poll asked fairgoers their opinion on this end-of-life care issue:
“When a mentally competent adult is dying from an incurable and irreversible medical condition that is expected to end the individual’s life within six months, do you think this individual should be allowed to obtain from a physician a prescription for medication that may be self-administered to end that person’s life?”
Sixty-eight point twenty-two percent responded yes; 22.62 percent responded no; 9.16 percent responded undecided or no opinion.
The House of Representatives’ poll used the following language: “When a mentally capable adult is dying from a terminal illness, do you think this adult should be allowed to receive a prescription for life-ending medication they may self-administer?
Sixty-six point eight percent responded yes; 22.8 percent responded no; 10.5 percent responded undecided or no opinion
For more information on the Minnesota Senate State Fair Poll, go here.
For more information on the Minnesota House of Representatives State Fair Poll, go here.
Information provided by Compassion & Choices, the oldest nonprofit working to improve care and expand options for the end of life in the United States, with 450,000 members nationwide. For more information, visit CompassionAndChoices.org.
Support Black local news
Help amplify Black voices by donating to the MSR. Your contribution enables critical coverage of issues affecting the community and empowers authentic storytelling.
I take exception to the polling.
I have found (serving 60 fair booth days) that about half of the public thinks they are in favor of such a law, that is until they learn about the flaws in the laws that create new paths of elder abuse with immunity. Once they learn that a predatory heir may steer the signup process and then forcibly administer the lethal dose without oversight, they all said, “I am not for that!”.
Anyway all of these Oregon Model bills have the same flaws that eviscerate flaunted safe guards.
For example how many times have you nodded your head when the proponents declared that the lethal dose must be self-administered?
Well, read the language of the law/bill and you will find that there is no means provided to insure that marketing point. For example “self-administrate” was mentioned 11 times in the 8 page Minnesota SF 1880 and yet there was no means provided to confirm that the lethal dose was forced on not, who would know if they struggled.
In fact what is provided is that there may be no investigations allowed after the death (page 6 of 8 Subd. 12. In addition allowing a stranger that claims to know how the person communicates may speak for them eviscerates all the intended safeguards, page 1 of 8 (e).
Along with allowing predatory heirs and staff to witness even as other family members are not required to be contact.
This is a very dangerous public policy that by their own records in OR and WA is establishing poisoning as the “medical standard of care” for people that have “feelings” of fear of the loss of autonomy is poisoning.
We are all at risk of exploitationby these poorly composed laws/bills via the medical industrial complex, organ traffickers and predatory heirs.