SIDES DRAWN AS NEW ASSISTED-SUICIDE BILL DEBUTS.

Byline: STEVE GEISSINGER

Staff Writer

SACRAMENTO -- Diagnosed with AIDS, Walter Park wants to fight his illness to the end.

Stricken with terminal cancer, Tom McDonald wants to fight to put an end to his illness.

The desires of the two men, who have never met, define the debate over the latest attempt to establish physician-assisted suicide in California. The measure, Assembly Bill 374, is set for its first hearing Tuesday before the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

Proposed by Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez and Democratic Assembly members Lloyd Levine of Van Nuys and Patty Berg of Eureka, AB 374 would allow a California adult -- given a diagnosis of less than six months to live -- to get a legal prescription for death. It's modeled after an Oregon law that officials say has been used in the deaths of 292 people over the past nine years.

But this bill, like previous versions, is steadfastly opposed by the Catholic Church and has drawn other organized opposition, as well.

The group Californians Against Assisted Suicide fears that the possibility of assisted suicide will impact the treatment options offered by for-profit HMOs.

"HMOs often overrule physicians' treatment decisions, sometimes hastening patients' deaths," said Marilyn Golden, who also is an analyst for the Disability Rights, Education and Defense Fund.

"The cost of the lethal medication generally used for assisted suicide is about $35 to $50, far cheaper than the cost of treatment for long-term medical conditions.

"The incentive to save money by denying treatment already poses a significant danger. This danger would be far greater if assisted suicide is legal."

Although public-opinion polls show about 70 percent of Californians support doctor-assisted suicide, numerous attempts to pass such a law have failed. A 1988 initiative failed to qualify for the ballot; voters rejected a 1992 proposition; and bills fell short in 1999, 2005 and 2006.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has indicated he'd like voters to decide but hasn't ruled out considering a bill on doctor-assisted suicide.

Cancer patient McDonald is closely following the debate, hoping AB 374 is passed by the Legislature and approved by the governor. He's adamant about sparing himself and his family the agony of a lengthy illness.

If the bill fails again, he said, "I'll take my pistol and shoot myself in the heart."

His wife, Delores, supports his wishes.

In sharp contrast, Park, 61, the first director of the San Francisco Mayor's Office of Disability, opposes AB 374.

"I want to draw my last breath naturally," Park said. "I've sat with friends as they died. They loved every single breath."

sgeissinger(at)angnewspapers.com

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