Because so many other countries in the world look toward the Netherlands and their assisted suicide policies, medical officials there continually review and revise (if necessary) the guidelines to keep stringent watch over physicians and patients. Many other countries that are considering their own assisted suicide laws keep track of what happens in the Netherlands, and alter their own legislation accordingly.

The Netherlands policies are not perfect, but they indicate that a terminally ill patient who wants to die with dignity has the right to do so, and that practices regulating the system can work, and work effectively. Other countries, such as Columbia, have legalized physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients, and the Northwest Territories in Australia briefly legalized it, and then banned it again. Many Australians are working to legalize it again.

Here in America, many people believe physician-assisted suicide is a viable option for the terminally ill. A...
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