Compassion & Choices is a
nonprofit
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
organization in the United States working to improve patient autonomy and individual choice at the end of life, including access to
medical aid in dying. Its primary function is advocating for and ensuring access to aid in dying
History
Compassion & Choices is the successor to the
Hemlock Society
The Hemlock Society (sometimes called Hemlock Society USA) was an American right-to-die and assisted suicide advocacy organization which existed from 1980 to 2003. It was co-founded in Santa Monica, California by British author and activist ...
, and Compassion In Dying Federation; the organizations merged in 2007. The organization has a staff of 80 people located across the country.
The 2011
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...
Grand Jury prize winner, ''
How to Die in Oregon
''How to Die in Oregon'' is a 2011 American documentary film produced and directed by Peter Richardson (filmmaker), Peter Richardson. It is set in the U.S. state of Oregon and covers the state's Oregon Death with Dignity Act, Death with Dignity A ...
'',
documented the work of Compassion & Choices of Oregon.
See also
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Act 39 Act 39 of 2013 established the U.S. state of Vermont's Patient Choice and Control at End of Life Act ( Vermont Statutes Annotated Sec. 1. 18 V.S.A. chapter 113), which legalizes medical aid in dying (commonly referred to as physician-assisted suici ...
in
Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
, the first state to pass a death with dignity law by legislative action
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Barbara Coombs Lee
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Baxter v. Montana
''Baxter v. Montana'', is a Montana Supreme Court case, argued on September 2, 2009, and decided on December 31, 2009, that addressed the question of whether the state's constitution guaranteed terminally ill patients a right to lethal prescript ...
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California End of Life Option Act
California End of Life Option Act is a law enacted in June 2016 by the California State Legislature which allows terminally ill adult residents in the state of California to access medical aid in dying by self-administering lethal drugs, provide ...
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Oregon Death with Dignity Act
Measure 16 of 1994 established the U.S. state of Oregon's Death with Dignity Act (ORS 127.800–995), which legalizes medical aid in dying (commonly referred to as physician-assisted suicide) with certain restrictions. Passage of this initiativ ...
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Family Health Care Decisions Act
The Family Health Care Decisions Act is a statute adopted in New York state in 2010 that had been pending before the legislature since 1994. The statute was approved by the New York State Senate in July, 2009. The legislation was introduced by s ...
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Gonzales v. Oregon
''Gonzales v. Oregon'', 546 U.S. 243 (2006), was a landmark decision of the US Supreme Court which ruled that the United States Attorney General cannot enforce the federal Controlled Substances Act against physicians who prescribed drugs, in com ...
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Brittany Maynard
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Vacco v. Quill
''Vacco v. Quill'', 521 U.S. 793 (1997), was a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States regarding the right to die. It ruled 9-0 that a New York ban on physician-assisted suicide was constitutional, and preventing doctors from a ...
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Washington v. Glucksberg
''Washington v. Glucksberg'', 521 U.S. 702 (1997), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, which unanimously held that a right to assisted suicide in the United States was not protected by the Due Process Clause.
Background
Dr. Harold ...
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Washington Death with Dignity Act
Initiative 1000 (I-1000) of 2008 established the U.S. state of Washington's Death with Dignity Act ( RCW 70.245), which legalizes medical aid in dying with certain restrictions. Passage of this initiative made Washington the second U.S. state to ...
References
Bibliography
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''Farewell to Hemlock: Killed by its name'' an essay by
Derek Humphry
Derek Humphry (born 29 April 1930) is a British-born American journalist and author notable as a proponent of legal assisted suicide and the right to die. In 1980, he co-founded the Hemlock Society and, in 2004, after that organization dissolv ...
21 February 2005
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Compassion and Choices
Organizations established in 2005
Non-profit organizations based in Oregon
Health law in the United States
Assisted suicide
Euthanasia organizations