Pregnancy, Ethics, and the Law in Medical Assistance in Dying

Some US jurisdictions allow physicians to offer a lethal drug dose to adults with terminal diagnoses under certain conditions. We explore the morality of medical assistance in dying (MAID) for a pregnant woman with a terminal diagnosis in the context of state fetal protection laws. Several states have enacted laws or had court decisions that in the name of fetal protection prohibit abortions with limited exceptions, impose penalties on those involved in prohibited abortions, require treatment for certain pregnant brain-dead women, and recognize the personhood of embryos and fetuses through judicial declarations or statutes, among other things. Against this legal background, we explore the carryover meaning of these laws as they might bear on seeking MAID while pregnant and defend a prima facie moral right for dying women to choose MAID under the conditions it is practiced in the United States.