Giving Compass' Take:

• In this opinion piece from the Heritage Foundation, Monica Burke argues that physician-assisted suicide will put saving money ahead of the ethical care of poor patients.

• What tools do philanthropists have to address this issue? To what degree can Burke's concerns be avoided by helping poor and low-income patients afford end-of-life care?

• To learn more about the options available to patients nearing the end of their lives, click here.

The Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act was signed into law by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy ... As of Aug. 1, 2019, terminally ill patients with a prognosis of six months or fewer will now be able to self-administer lethal concoctions of drugs in order to take their own lives.

Murphy claimed in a statement that this bill would “[provide] terminally ill patients and their families with the humanity, dignity, and respect that they so richly deserve at the most difficult times any of us will face.”

This could not be further from the truth.

Physician-assisted suicide directly attacks human dignity; it is anything but compassionate.

Death is neither a solution nor a treatment for human suffering. Once we accept suicide as therapeutic, who qualifies for treatment becomes a moving target.

The introduction of physician-assisted suicide, according to Heritage Foundation health care expert Bob Moffit, ultimately prevents the most vulnerable populations from having access to quality, ethical end-of-life care.

As the demand for end-of-life care continues to increase, physician-assisted suicide emerges as a cheap alternative to appropriate palliative or hospice care.

In this scenario, it is the poor, the uneducated, and the socially marginalized who are most likely to be pressured into taking their own lives. These are the same populations who are the least likely to have someone else advocate on their behalf for proper care.

Read the full article about physician-assisted suicide by Monica Burke at The Heritage Foundation