May God have mercy on all of us. As a result of pressure from Congressional opponents of the Oregon law, the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration almost immediately issued a warning to Oregon physicians that they faced sanctions for prescribing lethal doses for terminally-ill patients. Last month, Attorney General Janet Reno confirmed what had been widely believed, that federal drug officials would not interfere with the Oregon law. In fact, the rush to die has not taken place.
Supporters say they have had numerous inquiries from patients.
State officials, citing privacy laws, would not confirm whether there has been a case. They say they will release a preliminary report as soon as they have recorded 10 suicides. As of last month, only three cases have been reported to state authorities. Actually, just the fact that the option of physician-assisted suicide exists may be helping the terminally ill cope with their suffering. According to Barbara Coombs Lee, the author of Oregon's Death with Dignity Act, less than ten percent of patients for whom physicians covertly prescribed lethal doses of medication took the drugs.