SYRACUSE (OSV News) — With Advent having begun just six days prior, a spiritual season marked by themes of hope, peace, love, and joy, more than 30 people braved the bitter cold in Syracuse December 4 to speak out against a controversial bill that, should it pass, would allow physicians to assist terminally ill adults as young as age 18 to die by suicide.

Events were held at four locations in the state, including in Manhattan.

Described by proponents as a compassionate end-of-life option with legal protections in place, the New York Legislature passed the Medical Aid in Dying Act (S. 138/A. 136), or MAiD, on June 9.

The measure currently sits with Governor Kathy Hochul, who has mentioned possible safeguard amendments. She has the option to sign it into law or veto it and has until December 31 to act.

The candlelight vigil took place outside the Sen. John H. Hughes Office Building in downtown Syracuse.

Organized by Chris Fadden, president of Syracuse Right to Life, in collaboration with the Albany-based New York Alliance Against Assisted Suicide, or NYAAAS, the gathering featured several speakers.

“This is a very dangerous bill,” said Dr. James Mostrom, a retired anesthesiologist from the Syracuse area. “I’m totally against it because it really compromises the physician-patient relationship. The patient can’t be sure that the doctor is always working in their own interest.”

He also emphasized that the American Medical Association is strongly opposed to assisted suicide. “It conflicts with our normal duties. I took an oath (that) I would do no harm. … There’s no place for physicians in suicide.”

Vigils held across state

The Syracuse vigil was one of four organized by NYAAAS. A second one held the evening of December 4 took place outside Hochul’s office in midtown Manhattan. The evening before, a vigil was held just outside the front gates of the governor’s mansion in Albany, the state capital, and another one took place in Tonawanda near Buffalo in western New York.

In all, more than 350 attended the four candlelight vigils.

On its website, the AMA states, “It is understandable, though tragic, that some patients in extreme duress, such as those suffering from a terminal, painful, debilitating illness, may come to decide that death is preferable to life. However, permitting physicians to engage in assisted suicide would ultimately cause more harm than good.”

“The patient wants the doctor to assist them, to take care of them, to basically fight for their best interests in health care. This (law) would just introduce a question in the patient’s mind: Does this doctor really care for me? … Are they for me or really against me?” Mostrom said. “Patients, when they’re seriously ill or very vulnerable, they’re vulnerable to suggestion. … You can’t take advantage of that vulnerability.”

Concerns about safeguards

Proponents argue that the safeguards in place would protect people from making an unwanted decision. For instance, the proposed legislation requires two physicians to confirm that the patient is an adult, has a terminal illness with less than six months to live, and has the mental capacity to make an informed decision.

However, Mostrom said doctors are often known to give inaccurate diagnoses and prognoses. “(You) think you’re working with something, and in fact, you find that it’s something totally different. So there are a lot of instances in that regard where it’s not an exact science. That’s one of the difficulties.”

Other safeguards include that the request must be voluntary and coercion-free, and that the patient can self-administer the medication.

“These aren’t safeguards at all, because we’ve seen in other states that have adopted this, in other countries that adopted this, those safeguards very quickly fall by the wayside,” Mostrom said. “Physician-assisted suicide quickly becomes assisted suicide by other health care personnel. It very quickly becomes euthanasia, where the patient really doesn’t have that much say, particularly in patients who are disabled or have trouble communicating their wishes.”

Advocates speak out

Syracuse Right to Life area director Rhett Cox is a passionate advocate for the vulnerable who has driven to Albany many times to lobby legislators.

“If you look at the number one reason (why) most people in legalized areas want to die, (it) is because they say they feel like somehow they’ve become a burden. This law is only going to increase that feeling. They need the protection to know (their) life is worth living. We’re stripping that away as a society,” Cox said at the vigil.

Syracuse Bishop Douglas J. Lucia was unable to attend due to a longstanding commitment. However, James Salamy, director of public policy for the Syracuse Diocese, read a letter on his behalf, which addressed those gathered.

“I have written to both our governor and the state legislature that my own objection to this legislation is not based only on my religious beliefs, but also on my concern of what ancillary effects it will have on our society,” the bishop wrote. “One of my greatest fears is that as a society we start determining what is ‘quality of life,’ and in turn, start deciding for the voiceless what is a life worth living.”

Albany vigil draws diverse coalition

In Albany, stationed just outside the front gates of the governor’s mansion, a line of soft candlelight broke through the darkness.

Honks from cars, followed quickly by cheers and raised candles, rang out across the road as those driving by read the large sign held by the crowd. In large black and white font, it read “No Assisted Suicide.” Over 60 people came out in the cold.

“There is no more critical bill in New York this year, or really in my time at the conference, that has risen to this level,” said Dennis Poust, executive director for the New York State Catholic Conference.

“This is not a Catholic effort,” he continued. “This is Catholic, Christian, evangelical, secular. It doesn’t matter. We all realize that this is a bill that will lead to the vulnerable being targeted for death, and we can’t have it.”

Jason McGuire, executive director of New York Families Foundation, said that New Yorkers were starting to wake up to the weight of the bill.

“There’s a sleeping giant that’s waking up on this issue,” McGuire said. “As people come and get advocated, that’s got to get the governor involved because this is a bad bill.”

“I just know that once you open up the Pandora’s box of assisted suicide, the Pandora’s box of state-sanctioned suicide, there’s no going back,” he said. “Once you open that, it expands. And so we’ve got to stop this.”

Max Rodriguez, manager of government affairs for the Center for Disability Rights, said that making the bill law would tell New Yorkers “we’d rather see you dead than take care of you.”

“I think people are really waking up to this issue and becoming more passionate about it,” Rodriguez told The Evangelist. “It’s not an issue that people talk about every day, and that kind of makes it harder. I think a lot of people aren’t aware of what’s going on.”

But the turnout that night gave him hope.

“It really meant a lot to see a diverse group of individuals get together and be so passionate about an issue that’s so important, and to think about others beyond themselves.

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Tami Scott is editor of The Catholic Sun, news outlet of the Diocese of Syracuse. This story was first published in The Catholic Sun and distributed in partnership with OSV News. Contributing to this story was Emily Benson of The Evangelist.