Lisa Vigil Schattinger
Your Turn
Guest Columnist
Columbus Dispatch, July 5, 2025

I became an advocate for medical aid in dying for the terminally ill after witnessing my stepfather’s death.

Grandpa Jack was a brilliant and loving man who, when dying of cancer, used Oregon’s pioneering Death With Dignity law more than a decade ago to ensure that he died in peace and calm, surrounded by his loving family. He was also enrolled in hospice to optimize his quality of life and was extremely thankful to live in a state with this option that brought him such comfort.

I was intensely sad that Grandpa Jack was dying, but I would never have selfishly asked for him to suffer longer.

We were able to honor him and start processing our grief as a family while he was still alive, and we spent every special moment we could with him.

Unfortunately, most Americans today, Ohioans among them, lack that option.

Death isn’t something most people want to talk about, but it is universal.

Research shows that, when asked, most people agree that adults nearing death should have the personal autonomy to determine how it will happen.

Even though MAID remains unavailable to Ohioans, more U.S. states are recognizing its value to their citizens.

In May, Delaware joined 10 other states and Washington, D.C., in allowing people with terminal illnesses and six months or less to live can decide to die peacefully at the time they choose.

The dying patient must be capable of making their own health care decisions and must self-ingest the prescribed medication.

Years of advocacy in New York state culminated in the June 9 passage of a MAID bill by the state legislature. It awaits the governor’s signature.

All U.S. states allowing MAID have similar restrictions: A person cannot qualify due to a physical disability, chronic conditions, age or dementia.

Lethal injection, euthanasia and mercy killing are all specifically prohibited in these laws.

Even in Ohio, where neighbors are divided on so many issues, 69% of poll respondents supported this right.

It’s in our organization’s name: Ohio End of Life Options. We believe people who are dying deserve options other than simply submitting to the vagaries of a terminal disease.

To be clear, we also advocate for access to high-quality hospice care, but we understand that not all suffering can be relieved and believe that only the dying individual can determine when the suffering is too great.

I am thankful that residents of Delaware now have this right, and I believe Ohioans deserve the same freedom and autonomy.

Some people object to medical aid in dying on religious grounds. We respect that and agree that no health care provider should be compelled to provide MAiD, but we don’t believe any person’s religious beliefs should inhibit another person’s freedom.

Other MAID opponents suggest that it would lead inevitably to a ‘slippery slope’ scenario in which vulnerable people, such as those who are poor or have disabilities, would be pressured into ending their lives prematurely. However, MAID laws in the United States have time-tested and proven processes to protect the vulnerable from fraud or coercion. Decades of experience have yielded no evidence of such abuse.

For a person seeking MAID, death is a given; it is imminent.

Medical aid in dying is a compassionate means of affording autonomy and agency as death approaches. It does not replace palliative care or hospice; it is an option in addition to them.

If terminally ill Ohioans are to have the option at all, we need Ohio legislators to support a MAID law. We all need to start voicing our support and voting for lawmakers who will support this option.

Ohioans are politically and philosophically diverse.

We disagree on may issues. But we share core values prizing freedom, personal autonomy, compassion and love for our families.

It is those values that I believe will allow Ohioans to maintain the freedom and dignity they deserve in their final days.

Registered nurse Lisa Vigil Schattinger is the executive director of Ohio End of Life Options. She holds a master of science in nursing.

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