Euthanasia: how proponents justify it and provide models for regulation

Life prolonging advances in medicine have raised debate about the concept and clinical practice of euthanasia for terminally ill patients. This debate involves the need for protection of patients' rights in their delicate condition, while providing them with the right to end their own life, if they choose to do so. This paper addresses how proponents justify euthanasia in societies that have legalized it, while ensuring that patients asking for a merciful death do not get exploited by the system. Regulation models are thus adapted from the Dutch and Oregon medical systems.