Compassion and Choices, the nation’s biggest and most effective advocacy group for physician aid-in-dying, was quite impressed with Secretary Clinton’s heartfelt and courageous statement on end-of-life choices at the NH town hall last night. Here is the question posed to Clinton by Jim Kinhan , an 81-year-old dying from colon cancer:
"… I wonder what leadership you could offer within an executive role that might help advance the respectful conversation that is needed around this personal choice that people may make, as we age and deal with health issues or be the caregivers of those people, to help enhance their end of life with dignity."
And here is Hillary Clinton’s answer, totally off-the-cuff and totally on the mark. She admitted that she had never been asked about this before. Her candor and her courage were so impressive to Compassion and Choices that they sent out a letter to all their supporters and are now featuring Clinton on the front page of their website:
We need to have a conversation in our country … It is a crucial issue that people deserve to understand from their own ethical, religious, faith-based perspective. So here is how I think about it. I want, as president, to try to catalyze that debate because I believe you are are right. This is going to become an issue more and more often. We are on the good side having many people live longer, but often then with very serious illnesses that they can be sustained on but at some point don't want to continue with the challenges it poses. We have to be sure that nobody is coerced. I thank you so much for raising this really important, absolutely critical question that we are all going to have to do some thinking about.”
Compassion and Choices agrees with Hillary that we need a conversation:
This is a critical question for our nation that is only going to become more crucial in the coming years. We have to let all of the candidates know that there is a strong movement to expand end-of-life choice in this country, and we are ready to bring this issue to the forefront.
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So, yes, indeed! Let’s have a conversation and let’s make this a national conversation. Thanks to the questioner and thanks to Secretary Clinton for showing the way.