12/19/2022 -
All of ProCon’s reliable, unbiased content about the medical aid in dying debate, now in our updated format.
3/29/2022 -
Terminally ill people will no longer be subject to a residency requirement to seek physician-assisted suicide in Oregon.
Compassion & Choices, a national advocacy group, sued Oregon. The Oregon Health Authority and the Oregon Medical Board settled in the U.S. District Court in Portland on Monday, agreeing to stop enforcing the residency requirement and to ask the legislature to edit the law. The group plans to pressure the eight other states and DC with aid-in-dying programs to lift their residency requirements.
1/10/2022 -
Colombia legalized euthanasia for people with terminal illnesses in 1997. In 2021, the Colombian court recognized that the procedure should not be only available to those with terminal illnesses and, on Jan. 7, 2022, Victor Escobar, who had a degenerative disorder (end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), was the first person with a non-terminal illness to die via legally regulated euthanasia in Colombia. The next day, Martha Sepulveda, who suffered with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, was the second person with a non-terminal illness to die via legally regulated euthanasia in Colombia.
11/11/2021 -
Where in the world is euthanasia and/or PAS legal? Illegal? Find out in this updated resource featuring laws from 30 countries.
10/30/2020 -
According to preliminary results, more than 65% of New Zealanders voted in favor of legalizing physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill adults. Official results will be announced on Nov. 6, 2020 and the law will take effect in Nov. 2021.
10/19/2020 -
The country already allows physician-assisted suicide for children younger than one, children over 12, and adults.
2/26/2020 -
Germany’s highest court overturned a ban on organized assisted suicide that prevented doctors from assisting suicides professionally.
8/29/2019 -
Learn about the presidential candidates’ views on important issues, compare them with a side-by-side chart, find your best match with a fun quiz, track their finances, and so much more on our 2020 Presidential Election website. The New York Times called our previous presidential election site “The most comprehensive tool for researching the candidate’s stance on issues.” Check back monthly for expanded issue coverage.
7/26/2019 -
On July 24, 2019, Oregon removed the 15-day waiting period between requests for PAS medication for people who are not expected to live for 15 more days.
6/12/2019 -
On June 12, 2019, Maine legalized physician-assisted suicide, joining eight other states and DC.
4/15/2019 -
The new law will go into effect on Aug. 1, 2019 and will allow adult terminally-ill New Jersey residents with fewer than six months to live to self-administer life-ending medication.
2/21/2019 -
Our new topic explores the pros and cons in the debate over making birth control pills available over-the-counter (OTC). 9.1 million women (12.6% of contraceptive users) use birth control pills, which are the second-most commonly used method of contraception in the United States. Proponents say making the birth control pill available over-the-counter would lower teen pregnancy rates, provide contraceptive access to medically underserved women, and ease access to a health-improving drug with decades of safe use. Opponents say making the Pill over-the-counter would raise the cost of contraception for women, pose a danger to teens’ and women’s health by removing the doctor’s visit requirement, and limit what options are made available.
Our new website presents the top pro & con arguments and quotes, a history of the debate, a video gallery, the prescription status of birth control pills around the world, and a list of drugs switched from prescription to OTC status.
1/28/2019 -
Since 1998, doctors have written over 4,000 prescriptions for physician-assisted suicide (PAS) drugs, and 66.3% of patients have used the drugs to end their lives. Explore additional statistics in this new resource.
1/17/2019 -
ProCon.org, a Los Angeles-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity,
seeks an in-house Researcher (full-time with benefits or part-time
without benefits) to develop content for websites devoted to a
nonpartisan in-depth presentation of 70+ controversial issues. Three
items are required for application, as specified in the job notice.
10/4/2018 -
Read the main arguments in the debate over whether euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide should be legal in the United States, with a look at issues ranging from medical perspectives to slippery slopes to legal rights.