Title: Euthanasia in the United States - Wikipedia
Headings: Euthanasia in the United States
Euthanasia in the United States
Contents
Early history
Legislation and political movements
California
Maine
New Jersey
Texas
Massachusetts
Oregon
Unsuccessful initiatives
U.S. public opinion on euthanasia
Opinion by Christian affiliation
Opinion by race and gender
See also
References
Further reading

Content: The key difference between euthanasia and assisted suicide is that in cases of assisted suicide, the individual receives assistance, but ultimately voluntarily causes their own death. In euthanasia the individual does not directly end their life, but another person acts to cause the individual's death. Contents
1 Early history
2 Legislation and political movements
2.1 California
2.2 Maine
2.3 New Jersey
2.4 Texas
2.5 Massachusetts
2.6 Oregon
2.7 Unsuccessful initiatives
3 U.S. public opinion on euthanasia
3.1 Opinion by Christian affiliation
3.2 Opinion by race and gender
4 See also
5 References
6 Further reading
Early history
See also: Eugenics in the United States § Euthanasia programs
Debates about the ethics of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide date from ancient Greece and Rome. After the development of ether, physicians began advocating the use of anesthetics to relieve the pain of death. In 1870, Samuel Williams first proposed using anesthetics and morphine to intentionally end a patient's life. Over the next 35 years, debates about euthanasia raged in the United States which resulted in an Ohio bill to legalize euthanasia in 1906, a bill that was ultimately defeated. Euthanasia advocacy in the U.S. peaked again during the 1930s and diminished significantly during and after World War II. Euthanasia efforts were revived during the 1960s and 1970s, under the right-to-die rubric, physician assisted death in liberal bioethics, and through advance directives and do not resuscitate orders. Several major court cases advanced the legal rights of patients, or their guardians, to withdraw medical support with the expected outcome of death.