At Vote:Individual Self-Determination [Complete]

Individual Self-Determination
A resolution to improve worldwide human and civil rights.
Category: Human Rights
Strength: Strong
Proposed by: Hirota

Description: Believing every individual has the right to decide their own fate.

Believing no individual should be forced by any person or entity to prolong their own life past the point having any quality of life, if that person is suffering a terminal disease/severe injury and makes a clear, informed decision to end their life.

Mandates:

1: All persons of adult age or over may make the decision to refuse medical treatment for any reason, even if that decision will result in their own death. This includes the signing of DNR (do not resuscitate) orders. The state retains the right to quarantine any person carrying a dangerous communicable disease, and who refuses treatment until that person recovers, accepts treatment, dies naturally, or invokes right to die.

2: All individuals may write a living will stating their wish to invoke right to die in case of future terminal illness or severe accident that may render them incapable of making such wishes known at the time. Living wills may be cancelled or retracted, only by the individual named on them, at any time if the person changes their mind.

3: All persons of adult age or above can at any time invoke a right to die, assisted if necessary, and terminate their own lives if they are suffering a terminal or severe chronic disease or injury that will necessitate the long term use of strong drugs to control pain and/or dependence on others for personal care.

4: Any person who is incapable of making a right to die decision due to their medical condition, but has a living will, must have that will honoured if the conditions in the will match their medical situation. Nations retain the right, and are encouraged to require, that several independent medical assessments by qualified doctors are made of the patient medical state before right to die is carried out.

5: No person may make a right to die decision for another person. Exceptions to this are medical personnel during triage, and parents/guardians of children or adults mentally incapable of making such decisions. In the case of parents/guardians, a nation is strongly encouraged to require that the right to die request go through their legal system to ensure the decision is being made in the best interests of the patient only.

6: No medical professionals may be forced to participate in any form of right to die if it goes against their personal or ethical beliefs. No medical professional may be hindered or prevented from participating in any form of right to die if they agree to be involved.

7: Methods used for right to die must be as humane, painless and fast acting as possible. Starvation, for example, is not permitted.

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