Oregon's Assisted Suicide Law at Supreme Court

I have reviewed our brief to be filed next week at the Supreme Court of the United States in support of the Department of Justice defending a directive put in place by then U.S. Attorney General Ashcroft in 2001 that said assisting in suicide is not a legitimate medical purpose and stated that physicians in Oregon who prescribed life-ending drugs would lose their licenses to prescribe federally controlled drugs under the Controlled Substances Act. 

The case has been litigated for years with the latest decision coming from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit which blocked the Department of Justice from enforcing that directive.  We have been involved in this case from the start filing critical briefs on behalf of the government. 

I believe the federal government must have the opportunity to legally prohibit physicians from prescribing life-ending medication to assist patients to commit suicide.  The Attorney General clearly has the authority to use a federal statute to prevent physicians from assisting in ending the lives of terminally ill patients.

In February, the Supreme Court agreed to hear this case.  And next week I have directed our Washington office to file an amicus brief at the Supreme Court in support of the government's directive.   The case, Alberto R. Gonzales v. State of Oregon, will have very serious ramifications.  I will keep you posted on this very important case.