Larry Macafee Case Summary

In another case, Larry Macafee was involved in a motorcycle accident causing him to become paralyzed from the neck down. He could not breath on his own, his insurance was running out and he did not want to burden his family with medical bills. The right to die decision did not appear until his ventilator had been dislodged and he almost suffocated. At that moment he stared death in the eyes. He filed a law suit and won the case, which should have been the end of his suffering, but instead became a chance to be persuaded not to go through with it. By prolonging his condition, his catheter had the chance to malfunction, causing toxins to build up and cause two strokes, which put him in a coma. This was something he was trying to avoid, but tragically went through it anyway. He died a few months later, around ten years after the law suit (Pence). When it gets to a point of misery and pain, a person should have the choice to decide their own fate, and not to be persuaded. In contrast to the other cases, Jerry Canfield’s wife JoAnn did not have the option to end her life. Joann Canfield was diagnosed with the last stage of Alzheimer. Mrs. Canfield told her husband that she

In certain cases like Cody Curtis and Larry Macafee, they had a right to choose life or death. In cases like Canfield and Cruzan, they did not have the right. In a fair environment everyone should have the same rights as people in other states. Also, the right to die can help ease the financial burden placed on the families once the person is gone. They are people too, and their families are dealing with similar hardships, like the other families. Ultimately a court or hospital should not decide the fate of a patient, and should instead give that right to them or their family. If that chose is to refuse treatment, like Cody, or have a love one decide, like Canfield, then they ought to have that