Prescription to Die – GA Legislators Explore Assisted Suicide

Atlanta, GA – On Monday, Georgia legislators explored a change to state law to allow doctors to write lethal prescriptions to facilitate suicide (instead of employing suicide prevention) for patients who have a terminal diagnosis. This sounded alarm bells for GRA members and pro-life advocates who believe the state should recognize and affirm the value of all innocent human life, including the lives of the elderly, disabled, and terminally ill.

“This is a learning committee meeting,” said Rep. Sharon Cooper (R-Marietta) Chairman of the Public Health Committee as she introduced the presenting organizations.

The assisted suicide concept was presented to the committee under the benign-sounding euphemism “Medical Aid in Dying” (MAID), which is misleading since hospice and palliative care are already widely available to provide comfort measures before natural death. 

If adopted, the suicide prescription would be limited to victims who are over 18 years old, have been diagnosed with a terminal illness, and are capable of administering the drug themself, thus taking their own life with the help of medical professionals.

Currently in Georgia, it is a felony to assist someone to commit suicide per GA Code § 16-5-5 – but MAID would change that.

“[Under MAID] everbody is protected from criminal and civil liabilities,” said Dr. Adrienne Mims, one of the presenters. Dr. Mims was appointed by the governor to the Georgia Older Adults Cabinet and the Georgia Council on Aging.

The committee examined data from Oregon where physician assisted suicide has been legal for many years.

“What we find is, although more than 4,000 prescriptions were written, only 66% of those were used,” said Dr. Mims. 

This indicates that one-third of those who requested the suicide pill did not take it. For those who take it, if they change their mind, there is no recourse. “There is no antidote,” said Mims.

Once a patient ingests the lethal cocktail of drugs, they lose consciousness in about 10 minutes and are dead within about an hour. As with any suicide, the family and friends of the victim would be left to mourn the fatal decision, discover the body, and wonder if they were in some way responsible. If you have ever attended the funeral of a suicide victim, you know the shock and trauma it causes for the family. They are often plagued with questions like:

“Was it something I said that led him to this?”

“Should I have done more to reach out and support him?”

“Could I have prevented him making this decision?”

Thankfully, Rep. Scott Hilton (R- Peachtree Corners) raised concerns about the suicide drug to his colleagues calling it “morally abhorrent.”

Loopholes for Murder?

The patient would have to request the deadly prescription in writing, which raises concerns about the possibility of coercion and abuse from one’s caregivers or heirs who might be able to forge the patient’s signature. Once Grandma is sent home with the prescription how would anyone know if she self-administered the lethal drug voluntarily and knowingly or not? If it was concealed in other medications, or if there was a struggle, who would know? 

During the meeting it was mentioned that this deadly dose could even come to the victims house through the mail! 

Some might argue that potential loopholes are not a big concern in these cases because the patient had a terminal illness, and was going to die anyway. This thinking represents an obvious assault on the sanctity of life, and has led to the creation of organizations like Not Dead Yet that advocate for the rights of patients with a terminal diagnosis.

We believe Georgia law should recognize and protect the lives of terminally ill patients just like anyone else. The GAGOP platform and resolutions passed over the years have repeatedly affirmed the right to life for all innocent human beings. Any loopholes that might provide cover for murder, jeopardizing lives of vulnerable patients should be a massive concern.

Who Benefits from MAID?

Legislation like this begs the question, who stands to benefit from this change? 

The official narrative would have you to believe this effort is all about allowing sick people to engage in the ultimate act of autonomy by choosing to die on their own terms in defiance of their Creator. But the reality is that most legislation is driven by money, and behind all the sob stories and compassionate language stands the health insurance companies who could save a ton of money by encouraging suicide instead of natural death.

Someone who believes in eugenics might regard potential loopholes for murder as a feature not a defect in the law since people tend to wrack up their largest medical expenses at the end of life representing high costs for the taxpayer (because medicine has become so heavily socialized) and/or the insurance companies who have an incentive to make suicide easy and attractive to sick people whom they regard as a “drain on the system.” Health insurance companies benefit from milking patients by collecting premiums and government subsidies for decades of the consumer’s life when they don’t need much medical assistance. Then, when they begin to need it, that’s when the industry looks for ways to drop them as a liability. 

If physician assisted suicide is legalized in Georgia, might health insurance companies possibly be incentivized to say “we can’t pay for your chemotherapy, but assisted suicide is covered 100%,” thereby encouraging suicide?

These financial incentives are some of the many tragic eventual consequences of socialized medicine. Heartbreaking stories from Canada and Europe have shown us that physician-assisted suicide quickly leads to euthanasia.

Any assistance in suicide would seem to violate the “do no harm” clause in the Hippocratic Oath taken by many physicians and according to the Heritage Foundation, could open the door for the “practice of medicine to be corrupted.” 

It comes as no surprise that Chairwoman Cooper, who appears to have initiated this explorative learning session about MAID, receives massive campaign contributions from the healthcare industry (medical groups, individual doctors, Pfizer, etc.)

Rep. Cooper received a failing 37% on her GRA legislative scorecard this year after comparing her voting record to the principles of the Republican Party. Many Cobb County Republicans find it infuriating that, while running on the Republican ticket, Rep. Cooper has not allowed hearings on pro-life and medical freedom legislation, and instead gives priority to extreme ideas like assisted suicide and bills that grow government and benefit Big Pharma. Many find it disturbing that the GA Faith and Freedom Coalition for the last three years has given a perfect score (100% in 2025, 2024 , and 2023) to Rep. Cooper in spite of her record of opposition to public policy positions that Christians and Republicans usually support.

Please join us in emailing the members of the Public Health Committee to let them know your thoughts on physician assisted suicide. Sometimes hearing from constituents can make all the difference. Experience has taught us that politicians need a lot of encouragement to do the right thing, so please also consider sending a message of gratitude and encouragement to Rep. Scott Hilton for his bold opposition to so-called “Medical Aid in Dying.”

Email Rep. Scott Hilton: Scott.Hilton@House.GA.gov