Debating Medical Aid in Dying

The debate about medical aid in dying is ongoing.

Since 1994, when Oregon became the first U.S. state to legalize medical aid in dying to terminally ill people, the number of states where it is an option has grown to 10, plus the District of Columbia. But it remains a struggle of conscience for many: Only a year after his death has it become publicly known that Daniel Kahneman, Israeli-American Nobel Prize winner, chose to end his life in Switzerland. As the Wall Street Journal reported in March 2025, Kahneman wrote to friends before his March 2024 death: “I am not embarrassed by my choice, but I am also not interested in making it a public statement.”

Colorado, California, D.C., Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont and Washington all wrote laws to allow the end-of-life option, while Montana offers it via a court decision. Individuals in the U.S. must have a terminal illness as well as a prognosis of six months or less to live.

Daniel Kahneman received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 2002.

Time To Go

The Wall Street Journal article reports that Kahneman wrote to several friends, “I have believed since I was a teenager that the miseries and indignities of the last years of life are superfluous, and I am acting on that belief.” He went on: “I am still active, enjoying many things in life (except the daily news) and will die a happy man. But my kidneys are on their last legs, the frequency of mental lapses is increasing, and I am ninety years old. It is time to go.”

Kahneman noted that some would have preferred him to wait until his health was more obviously in decline, but that he made his decision when he did to avoid that exact state.

He was known for his work focusing on such concepts as cognitive biases and prospect theory. Kahneman effectively launched the field of behavioral economics, influencing several other fields as well. He won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 2002 for his research into integrating insights from psychological research into economics.

An Emotional Topic

Support in America for medical aid in dying — the language preferred by Compassion & Choices, which argues that references like “assisted suicide” and “euthanasia” are inaccurate — has been consist over the past decade.

Indeed, reflecting the struggle many seem to have with the concept, the terminology seems to make a difference. A 2024 Gallup Poll found that 71% of Americans believe doctors should be “allowed by law to end the patient’s life by some painless means if the patient and his or her family request it.” But only 66% supported “doctor-assisted suicide” even for terminal patients living in severe pain who request it. Gallup speculates the word “suicide” drives down the rate of support, saying, “Doctor-assisted suicide consistently receives slightly lower support, likely because ‘suicide’ carries social and religious stigma. This is also reflected in the finding that only 22% of Americans believe suicide is morally acceptable.”

Morality Versus Legality

Kahneman’s lack of terminal illness might leave many questioning not only his decision but also whether it is even right for him to be able to access doctor-assisted help in ending his life. As the Gallup Poll found, Americans’ feelings on the morality of doctors’ assisting in the act are mixed. Fifty-three percent find the doctors’ involvement morally acceptable, with 40% calling it morally wrong.

Many of Kahneman’s friends and loved ones continue to have mixed feelings about his decision one year later, whether it is due to their moral misgivings or their feeling that he continued to enjoy life.

Kahneman’s decision to end his life before enduring more suffering may be one that many people struggle to understand, but it does offer an opportunity to talk more deeply about our right to live — and die — according to our own wishes. As he said in his message to loved ones, “The last period has truly not been hard, except for witnessing the pain I caused others.” While the ethics and legality of his decision can be debated, a stark question to ask is also whose pain has more importance—the person opting to end their life or those they leave behind.