Connecticut Considers Assisted Suicide Bill

State legislators heard deeply divided testimony Wednesday on a proposal that would allow for doctors to work with patients and prescribe drugs that would lead to their deaths.

The measure is known as "aid-in-dying" or "physician-assisted suicide." The practice is legal in just four states: Oregon, Washington, Montana and Vermont.

Supporters of the proposal said they have a right to end their lives the way they want to.

Connecticut resident Charles Silbert received his prostate cancer diagnosis a year ago.

"I’ve never been afraid to die, but I am afraid of how I may die. I’ve seen my mother die a bad death and I’ve seen other people die a bad death," he said.

Silbert described his possible end as "gruesome" and "unpleasant." He said he has a right to make that death a little easier.

“I want the choice and that does not mean that I do not want palliative care for as long as it works. The question is how long will it work? How well will it work?" Silbert said.

Not all patients feel the same way. During the hearing, lawmakers heard from a number of others who described physician-assisted suicide as a quick way out.

“Let’s put our great Connecticut minds toward great pain management techniques, early and easily accessible palliative and hospice care," said Maggie Karner, who suffers from terminal brain cancer.

She said the focus should turn toward extending life rather than ending it.

Karner is involved with an experimental program at Yale University, which she said could lead to a cure down the road.

"I want to fight this disease for myself and possibly for others," Karner said.

Silbert said laws have been geared toward specific cases in the past and wants lawmakers to act now on what he refers to as a civil rights issue.

"I feel the way the law is now, it truly is unfeeling, inhumane, and you know, I’ve got to do something," he said.

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