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Hawaiians in small numbers pursue physician-assisted suicide

NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Oct. 22, 2012

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Thirty-one patients in Hawaii inquired about receiving a doctor’s aid in dying in the last year, and four terminally ill patients were prescribed lethal doses of medication, said Compassion & Choices Hawaii.

The organization is collaborating with the Hawaii-based Physician Advisory Council for Aid in Dying to test whether doctor-aided death is legal in the state and offering patients access to options available in Oregon and Washington, where the practice is allowed.

No patient in Hawaii has ingested the prescribed medication, the report said. The Hawaii Medical Assn. opposes physician-assisted suicide, as does the American Medical Association, which says it is “fundamentally inconsistent with the physician’s role as healer.”

Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2012/10/22/prbf1022.htm.

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