skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, December 8, 2023

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Some South Dakota farmers are unhappy with industrial ag getting conservation funds; Texas judge allows abortion in Cox case; Native tribes express concern over Nevada's clean energy projects.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The Colorado Supreme Court weighs barring Trump from office, Georgia Republicans may be defying a federal judge with a Congressional map splitting a Black majority district and fake electors in Wisconsin finally agree Biden won there in 2020.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Texas welcomes more visitors near Big Bend but locals worry the water won't last, those dependent on Colorado's Dolores River fear the same but have found common ground solutions, and a new film highlights historical healthcare challenges in rural Appalachia.

KY Doctors Voice Support for Medical Aid-in-Dying Option

play audio
Play

Monday, April 4, 2022   

Doctors who specialize in geriatric medicine say they're seeing Kentuckians with advanced cancer and other serious illnesses travel out of state to end their lives on their own terms.

It may mean going to Oregon, which as of last week will no longer require a person to establish residency to be eligible for medical aid in dying.

Oregon is one of 10 states, along with the District of Columbia, where the practice is legal.

Dr. Christian Furman, medical director of the Trager Institute and Smock Endowed Chair in Geriatric Medicine at the University of Louisville School of Medicine, explained most of her patients are terminally ill and in their 80s or 90s. She said doctors in Kentucky want to expand the options for these patients and their families.

"We can definitely help with a lot of the pain and symptoms, and taking care of the patient and family as they need care," Furman explained. "But there are those patients where, you know, you just can't."

A recent poll from the nonprofit Compassion & Choices found voters, nationwide and across party lines, are eight times more likely to vote for candidates who sponsor or support medical aid-in-dying legislation.

The American Medical Association is opposed to the practice, however its Code of Medical Ethics affirms that pro and con positions are in moral equilibrium and says physicians may participate in medical aid in dying without violating their ethical obligations.

Furman note it is common for terminally ill patients to refuse food or water, a sign they are ready to end their lives.

"I've never had anybody intentionally say, 'OK I'm going to stop eating and drinking, so I'll die quicker.' I have had people say, they're just ready," Furman recounted. "They've made the decision, they're ready to die, they don't want any life-prolonging treatments."

She added physicians in the state are becoming more aware of the importance of expanding end-of-life options for patients' agency, comfort and care.

"We have a palliative medicine fellowship at U of L, and we teach this in our fellowship, what medical aid in dying is," Furman stressed.

Rep. Josie Raymond, D-Louisville, introduced a bill earlier this year, which would legalize the option in Kentucky.

Disclosure: Compassion & Choices contributes to our fund for reporting on Civic Engagement, Health Issues, Senior Issues, and Social Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
Toy drive organizers say books are a good donation approach for toy drives because a set of three can count as one whole gift as part of the toy limit for each child. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Christmas is a little more than two weeks away, and toy drives around the country are in full swing. A North Dakota organizer shares some things to …


Social Issues

play sound

A federal judge in Nevada has dealt three tribal nations a legal setback in their efforts to stop what could be the construction of the country's larg…

Environment

play sound

Hoosiers could get their holiday trees from any of about 200 tree farms in the state, according to the Indiana Christmas Tree Growers Association…


A new KFF analysis of government data estimates nearly 1 in 10 adults - 9%, or roughly 23 million people - owe medical debt. This includes 11 million who owe more than $2,000 and 3 million people who owe more than $10,000. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Reports from the Insurance Commissioner's office and the state Attorney General reveal an analysis of what they call "the true costs of health care" i…

Environment

play sound

Connecticut lawmakers are reluctant to approve new emission standards that would require 90% cleaner emissions from internal-combustion engines and re…

Social Issues

play sound

There are at least three victims after a shooting incident that happened at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus on Wednesday. By afternoon…

Environment

play sound

There's a new resource for Nebraska communities and organizations facing environmental justice issues: the Heartland Environmental Justice Center (HEJ…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021