Journal of Aging and Identity, Vol. 3, No. 1, 1998 The Many Faces of Physician-Assisted Suicide Lori A. Roscoe1,2 Physician-assisted suicide is a complex and controversial issue that touches on standards of medical practice, the balance between individual rights and the rights of the state, and our fears of death and pain. Supporters of assisted suicide propose it as an alternative to a lingering, highly technological death, and define it as the act of a physician who prescribes a lethal dose of a medication for a terminally ill patient, with the knowledge that the patient intends to commit suicide. The recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling upheld prohibitions against assisting in a suicide, but left open the possibility that in certain specific cases assisted suicide might be constitutionally protected. The Supreme Court's refusal to extend constitutional protection to assisted suicide was done in part to insure that public debate and legislative fact-finding would continue. As stated in Justice Rehnquist's majority opinion, ". . . Americans are engaged in an earnest and profound debate about the morality, legality and practicality of physician-assisted suicide" (Washington v. Glucksberg, 96-110—Opinion, 1997, p. 26). As researchers, policy makers, and health care providers, we have an obligation to insure that political debate and empirical research are continuing and productive, and that this issue becomes more than just an occasion to play out ideological or personal differences. This article begins with a review of the current legal status of physi- cian-assisted suicide, including a summary of the U.S. Supreme Court's rul- ing and a discussion of the right to refuse medical treatment. Second, it summarizes medical perspectives and provides a discussion of mental health 1Department of Aging and Mental Health, Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida. 2Correspondence should be directed to Lori Roscoe, MLIR, Department of Aging and Mental Health, Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida, 13301 N. Bruce B. Downs Blvd., MHC 7-221, Tampa, Florida 33612-3899. 35 1087-3732/98/0300-0035$15.00/0 © 1998 Human Sciences Press, Inc. KEY WORDS: physician-assisted suicide; ethics; aging; mental health.