O. J. BriganceA former NFL player diagnosed eight years ago with the crippling disease, ALS, is speaking out against a deeply flawed physician-assisted suicide bill being considered by lawmakers in the state of Maryland.
“Since being diagnosed, I have done a greater good for society in eight years than in my previous 37 years on earth,” said Super Bowl-winning NFL linebacker at a recent hearing in the Maryland statehouse.
“Because I decided to live life the best I could, there has been a ripple effect of goodness in the world.”
According to the National Catholic Register (NCR), the wheelchair-bound Brigance is suffering from ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosisa, aka Lou Gehrig’s disease, which is a progressive neurogenerative disease that leads to death within two to five years of diagnosis.
For Brigance, that diagnosis came eight years ago. After he recovered from the initial shock of the news that his life was about to end, he decided to make the most of what time he had left. In addition to becoming a senior advisor for the Baltimore Ravens, he also wrote a book and launched a foundation to help those living with ALS.
He is the perfect example of why Maryland lawmakers need to think twice before rushing to pass the Death With Dignity Act which would allow doctors to prescribe lethal doses of medication to "competent" patients who are terminally ill and have less than six months to live.
But the Maryland Catholic Conference cites serious flaws in the legislation such as how the bill does not require patients to undergo mental-health screening for conditions such as depression that may influence their request for death. The bill also does not require a medical professional to be present when the patient ingests the lethal prescription which could open the door to abuse or fraud.
In addition to these potentially dangerous flaws in the bill, the moral implications of passing such a law are even more serious, particularly from the point-of-view of the disabled community who say these bills unfairly discriminate against the handicapped.
“Critics of assisted-suicide measures say that such laws send the social message that suicide is an acceptable, or even preferable, way to handle pain and suffering,” the NCR reports. “When this is the case, they argue, the disabled and vulnerable are at risk of pressure — from family members, insurance companies or society in general — to end their own lives.”
This is in addition to the fact that so-called “ terminal” diagnoses are often mistaken.
Laws such as these could also lead to the legalization of involuntary euthanasia for those who are deemed “unworthy of life”.
“Our concerns about the bill are shared by numerous other groups, including members of the medical community, disability groups, advocates for vulnerable elders and others,” stated Mary Ellen Russell of the Maryland Catholic Conference in her written testimony before lawmakers.
“We wish also to convey our deep dismay about the message this legislation sends to those who might feel that their illness and the care they require is nothing more than a burden to their families and the rest of society.”
She added: “There is no life that we consider not worth living, no person who does not deserve to be valued simply because they are a living human being.”
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