Clear majority also believes (when asked) that Attorney General Ashcroft is wrong to oppose Oregon proposition allowing physician-assisted suicide
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by Humphrey Taylor

By approximately two-to-one, most adults continue to favor the right to euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide. When read a brief description of the Oregon proposition, allowing physician-assisted suicide for patients who are thought to have less than six months to live, a 61% to 34% majority said that they would favor such a law in their state. Unsurprisingly most people say (by 58% to 35%), when told about it, that Attorney General Ashcroft was wrong to move to overrule the Oregon proposition.

These are some of the findings of the latest issue of The Harris Poll conducted by Harris Interactive via telephone with a nationwide sample of 1,011 adults between December 14-19, 2001. The key findings are:

• By 65% to 29%, a substantial majority thinks "the law should allow doctors to comply with the wishes of a dying patient in severe distress who asks to have his or her life ended." Harris Interactive has asked this question since 1982, when a 53% to 34% majority supported it. Support peaked, at 73% to 24%, in 1993 and has declined somewhat since then to the current 65% to 29% majority.
  
• A 63% to 32% majority disagrees with the 1997 Supreme Court ruling that individuals do not have a constitutional right to doctor-assisted suicide. These numbers are virtually identical to replies given in 1997 (65% to 32%).
  
• A 61% to 34% majority (when read a detailed description of it) favors the Oregon proposition that would allow doctor-assisted suicide for patients with six months to live, if all three of the following conditions were met:

a) The patient requests it three times.

b) There is a second physician’s opinion.

c) There is a 15-day waiting period for the patient to change his or her mind.

It is worth noting that the 58% to 35% majority which believes that the Attorney General is wrong to oppose this proposition is slightly smaller than the 61% to 34% majority which favors the Oregon proposition. This may reflect some sympathy for the Attorney General who has been enjoying positive ratings recently, along with other senior members of the Cabinet who have been visible in fighting the "war on terrorism."

These findings do not mean that most people have heard about, or have opinions about, the Oregon proposition or the Attorney General's actions.

No matter which questions are asked, there is a strong, approximately two-to-one majority in favor of an individual's right to euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide where terminally ill patients clearly want this to happen. Whether the opposition of many conservatives, Republicans, and the Catholic Church, among others, can reverse this position is unclear. In the short and medium term however it is seems likely that the majority support for this position found in this poll will continue.

TABLE 1

ATTITUDES TO EUTHANASIA -- TREND

"Do you think that the law should allow doctors to comply with the wishes of a dying patient in severe distress who asks to have his or her life ended, or not?

Base: All adults

AGREE/DISAGREE WITH SUPREME COURT RULING

"In 1997, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that individuals do not have a constitutional right to doctor-assisted suicide. Do you agree or disagree with this decision?"

Base: All adults

FAVOR/OPPOSE LEGALIZING ASSISTED SUICIDE BASED ON NEW OREGON LAW*

“In 1994, people in Oregon voted on a proposition that would allow doctor-assisted suicides for PATIENTS WITH LESS THAN SIX MONTHS TO LIVE. Doctors would be allowed to help patients to commit suicide -- but only if -- ALL of the three following conditions were met:

1. The patient requests it three times.
2. There is a second opinion from another doctor.
3. There is a 15-day waiting period for the patient to change his or her mind.

Would you favor or oppose such a law in your state?"

Base: All adults

WAS ATTORNEY GENERAL RIGHT OR WRONG TO OVERRULE OREGON PROPOSITION

"This proposition, allowing physician-assisted suicide, was approved by a majority in Oregon. Attorney General Ashcroft recently moved to overrule, which he says is now illegal.

Do you think Attorney General Ashcroft was right or wrong to do this?

Base: All adults

This issue of The Harris Poll® was conducted by telephone within the United States between December 14-19, 2001 among a nationwide cross section of 1,011 adults. Figures for age, sex, race, education, number of adults and number of voice/telephone lines in the household were weighted where necessary to align them with their actual proportions in the population.

In theory, with a probability sample of this size, one can say with 95 percent certainty that the results have a statistical precision of plus or minus 3 percentage points of what they would be if the entire adult population had been polled with complete accuracy. Unfortunately, there are several other possible sources of error in all polls or surveys that are probably more serious than theoretical calculations of sampling error. They include refusals to be interviewed (non-response), question wording and question order, interviewer bias, weighting by demographic control data and screening (e.g., for likely voters). It is difficult or impossible to quantify the errors that may result from these factors.

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