Megan S Wright
Extract
Abstract
. . . This Article is the first to address whether terminally ill persons with cognitive impairments should be able to access PAID [Physician Aid In Dying] through supported decision-making. If provided with decision-making support, terminally ill persons with cognitive impairments may be able to elect PAID intentionally, voluntarily, and with understanding; that is, despite their impairments, such persons may be capable of autonomous end-of-life decision-making. This Article thus argues that the principle of equality demands that the law not exclude terminally ill supported persons with decisional impairments from PAID. This Article also argues that supported decision-making is a superior means for terminally ill persons with decisional impairments to access this end-of-life option compared to advance directives, which have numerous and well-documented problems. . .
Wright MS. Equality of Autonomy? Physician Aid in Dying and Supported Decision-Making. Arizona Law Review. 2021;63(157):158-197.