Death by Committee

The Daily Standard ^ | 12-02-04 | Hugh Hewitt

[phenn]

The Groningen Protocol is the proposal of doctors in the Netherlands for the establishment of an "independent committee" charged with selecting babies and other severely handicapped or disabled people for euthanasia. The original article provides some of the key details:

Under the Groningen protocol, if doctors at the hospital think a child is suffering unbearably from a terminal condition, they have the authority to end the child's life. The protocol is likely to be used primarily for newborns, but it covers any child up to age 12.

The hospital, beyond confirming the protocol in general terms, refused to discuss its details.

"It is for very sad cases," said a hospital spokesman, who declined to be identified. "After years of discussions, we made our own protocol to cover the small number of infants born with such severe disabilities that doctors can see they have extreme pain and no hope for life. Our estimate is that it will not be used but 10 to 15 times a year."

A parent's role is limited under the protocol. While experts and critics familiar with the policy said a parent's wishes to let a child live or die naturally most likely would be considered, they note that the decision must be professional, so rests with doctors.

[phenn]

Please follow link for full editorial.

[thoughtomator]

I shudder to think of people making "professional" decisions about whether others should live or die. Brave new world, indeed.

[cripplecreek]

As we start spotting genetic markers for various diseases that appear later in life, will some committee decide that someone is likely to develop cancer at 50 so it's better to kill the child now?

I know exactly what liberals will say. They'll say that I'm just paranoid about the "slippery slope" And in a few years they will happily be supporting what I had warned of and again be laughing off the "slippery slope" paranoia.