DETROIT – A 29-year-old dying woman's decision to take her own life has reignited a debate about medically-assisted suicide that was first started 16 years ago in Michigan.
She followed through with that choice by taking a legally prescribed lethal medication.
In a statement, Compassion & Choices, an end-of-life choice advocacy group that has been working closely with Maynard, said she "died as she intended -- peacefully in her bedroom, in the arms of her loved ones."
The right-to-die issue was spearheaded in Michigan by Dr. Jack Kevorkian. It made the ballot in 1998, but died quickly by a 2-to-1 margin. While the issue stalled with Kevorkian's imprisonment, it's still a big issue with some people.
Sherri Muzher, a right to die advocate, suffers from multiple sclerosis and wants the right to end her life so she can donate her organs.
The disease has claimed her voice, but in a statement to Local 4, she wrote, "It should be a person's choice. It would allow me to die with dignity. No one wants to die feeling humiliated or feeling like they are a burden to anyone else."
Michigan law and medical professionals have offered alternative to assisted suicide: Hospice care has quadrupled, living wills and advanced directives give patients tools to see their end of life wishes followed and doctors embrace more aggressive pain management.