The Euthanasia Debate and Empirical Evidence: Separating Burdens to Others From One’s own Quality of Life

Schneiderman et al tested the argument that the legalization of euthanasia could induce the terminally ill to seek to shorten their life in order not to burden others (see SIEC #940947). Ubel & Arnold pose 3 questions to analyze the conclusions that Schneiderman & his colleagues reached: 1) does their data prove this argument is incorrect; 2) is the argument a crucial part of the anti-euthanasia position; & 3) is it immoral or undesirable for the terminally ill to consider burdens to others?