The Illinois Catholic Conference is pushing back against a proposed bill that would legalize physician-assisted suicide in the state.
Chicago Catholic reported that the Conference has called for Catholics to educate themselves about assisted suicide and Church teaching on the issue. The Conference has also urged Catholics to contact their legislators to oppose the bill.
Robert Gilligan, executive director of the Conference, told Chicago Catholic that Church teaching forbids assisted suicide, since “our lives don’t belong to ourselves.”
He added that legalizing assisted suicide is bad public policy, as it results in several issues for society, including coercion from friends, family, or physicians. He also noted that insurance companies might choose assisted suicide drugs over treatments for an illness based on costs.
“I like to call attention to the poor and the marginalized, who often have insufficient health care coverages, so they’re more vulnerable here than probably those of us who have decent insurance coverage,” Gilligan said. “Also, the disability community is terrified of this. They know that disabled people do not get the same health care treatments just because of who they are and maybe the way they look.”
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Gilligan also argued legalizing assisted suicide also results in a “slippery slope” that could open the door for more worrying end-of-life legislation in the future.
He added that “suicide contagion” is another concern, since research conducted in states where assisted suicide is legal shows that the number of non-assisted suicides has increased as well.
Gilligan proposed increased access to palliative care as an alternative, pointing out that Catholic hospitals and palliative care homes are “very good” at providing end-of-life care.
LifeNews Note: Joshua Mercer writes for CatholicVote, where this column originally appeared.
The post Illinois Bill Would Legalize Assisted Suicide, Targeting Elderly and Disabled People appeared first on LifeNews.com.
The Illinois Catholic Conference is pushing back against a proposed bill that would legalize physician-assisted suicide in the state. Chicago Catholic reported that the Conference has called for Catholics to educate themselves about assisted suicide and Church teaching on the issue. The Conference has also urged Catholics to contact their legislators to oppose the bill. Robert Gilligan, executive […]
The post Illinois Bill Would Legalize Assisted Suicide, Targeting Elderly and Disabled People appeared first on LifeNews.com.