Court Considers Death With Dignity

And no, I do not mean services for the late Justice Rehnquist.

What happened is this: In the late 90s, Then-Senator John Ashcroft lobbied then-Attorney General Janet Reno to crack down on Oregon doctors who were writing lethal prescriptions for terminal patients under Oregon's Death With Dignity Act. His theory was that doctors were using controlled substances, so the Feds could outlaw controlled substances for that purpose and yank licenses if doctors persisted.

Janet Reno wrote a letter back saying no, it was not the job of the Attorney General to determine appropriate medical uses for drugs, and that states were entrusted with that job.

Fast-forward a couple of years. John Ashcroft becomes Attorney General, and not surprisingly, reverses Janet Reno's position. Threats are made, and lawsuits are filed. Lower courts rule against Ashcroft. And last Monday, the Supreme Court heard arguments on the case.

The administration would like to argue that the Death With Dignity Act is a bad idea, so it should be able to cut off use of controlled substances. Sounds simple, sounds appealing ... but my money is on Oregon in this one. Congress would have to jump through several more hoops to get where Ashcroft wants it to be.