Below is a message that went out this morning from the Patients Rights Action Fund regarding the continuing battle against physician assisted suicide.  Another evidence that God is on the throne.  We are thankful and praise God for this victory.  

Many more battles in this war are to come.  I testified this last Tuesday at the Connecticut Public Health Committee hearing and I believe that we will be successful in seeing this bill rejected, but we don't take these victories for granted and continue to work.  

St Augustine has been quoted as saying:  "Work as if everything depended on you and pray as if everything depended on God".   

The Massachusetts Joint Committee on Public Health held a poll vote today and the result is that both the House and Senate assisted suicide bills were sent to a study committee, effectively killing the bills for this legislative session! This is a huge victory – Massachusetts was one of the big targeted states for Compassion and Choices.   

            The odds were formidable:  40 bill sponsors, the media, and four full-time paid employees working for Compassion and Choices in the state.  The Massachusetts Alliance did a commendable job in defeating the bills.   Many testified at a public hearing; 25 doctors held a Doctors' Day at the State House; the doctors and members of the disability community visited committee members on a continual basis; the disability community die legislative briefings; and constituents held district meetings with committee members.  The Patients Rights Action Fund assisted the Alliance in training and strategy and put together the Doctor’s Day.  Aides said that in the end, they were counting calls asking for the bills to be defeated which contributed significantly to the defeat.    Congratulations and kudos to the Massachusetts Alliance Against Doctor-Prescribed Suicide, Second Thoughts Massachusetts and our physicians.

02 March 2018

Physician assisted suicide has again come to the Connecticut legislature as of today.  Raised HB 5417 says it is:  "To allow a physician to dispense or prescribe medication at the request of a mentally competent patient that has a terminal illness that such patient may self-administer to bring about his or her death."

This has been formally defeated three years in a row and advocates stepped back to regroup but are back to push this immoral, unethical and dangerous concept.  

There are many other avenues to pursue for end of life care that don't require making your health care professional complicit in your death rather than the time-honored tradition of being a healer and not your killer. 

https://tinyurl.com/ybhanyfa

Call or write your state senator and representative to tell them that this is a dangerous bill and concept to bring into this state.  

THIS IS RE-POSTED FROM THE PATIENTS RIGHTS ACTION FUND MESSAGE. It is with a heavy heart that we inform you that JJ Hanson passed away on December 30 peacefully at home surrounded by his family and their love.  The world and our cause have lost a courageous, charismatic and inspirational leader whose short life was dedicated to service to others.  To know him was to love him.  JJ is survived by his beloved wife, Kristen, and two young sons, James and Lucas.  The New York Alliance Against Assisted Suicide released the following life summation and tribute to JJ Hanson.  NYAAAS Mourns the Passing of J.J. Hanson Albany, NY - On December 30, 2017, following a valiant battle with cancer, J.J. Hanson passed away surrounded by family and friends.  A U.S. Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq, J.J. was diagnosed with glioblastoma--an aggressive form of brain cancer--in May 2014. Thirty-three years of age at the time, J.J. was told that he had four months to live; however, he proved the doctors wrong. After J.J. underwent a grueling regimen of surgery, chemotherapy, and an experimental treatment, his cancer subsided.  Following his recovery, J.J. became a national advocate for the terminally ill. In his role as President of the Patients' Rights Action Fund, J.J. worked to prevent the legalization of physician-assisted suicide in New York and other states. J.J.'s experience with cancer, together with his professional background in government, equipped him to be a remarkably effective leader, communicator, and influencer. J.J. also created a blog to share information about his journey with glioblastoma; the blog,YouCantHurtSteel.com, derives its name from J.J.'s family motto, "You Can't Hurt Steel." J.J. Hanson outlived his initial prognosis by more than three years, and his life story has been an encouragement and an inspiration to cancer survivors and many others across the country. He is survived by his wife, Kristen, and their two sons. The New York Alliance Against Assisted Suicide mourns the passing of our treasured colleague and friend. We will miss J.J.'s leadership, his optimism, his selflessness, his tenacity, and his willingness to draw upon his own difficult experiences to advocate for others facing challenging medical problems. We can unequivocally say that J.J. Hanson's life--despite its brevity--made the world a better place for those who will come after him.