The American College of Physicians is asking Gov. Brown to do what it argues is the right thing — veto California's right-to-die bill.
The measure would give terminally ill patients the right to get a lethal dose of drugs from a physician.
The ACP, the nation's second-largest doctors' group, calls the concept doctor-assisted suicide.
ACP President Dr. Wayne Riley, who's also a professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, said it’s unethical for doctors to participate in the intentional taking of a life.
“We acknowledge that some patients want control over the cause and timing of their death," Riley said. "But it’s not our role as physicians to provide that. And therefore we, ethically, cannot participate in the medicalization of suicide.”
In contrast, the California Medical Association is taking a neutral stance on the right-to-die bill. CMA Associate Vice President Molly Weedn said her members have evolved on the issue.
"We are always looking at ways to improve palliative and hospice care, and the emphasis should certainly be there," she explained. "But there's also an understanding that that's not always going to do the trick."
Five states have passed right-to-die laws, including New Mexico. That state's measure has been blocked by the New Mexico Court of Appeals.
Gov. Brown has not indicated what he plans to do with California's bill.
