“Assisted death has become a lively bioethical and political topic, with over 300 million people now having legal access to these practices. Despite the controversial nature of assisted death practices, the philosophical literature tends to be dominated by the view that they are morally permissible and ought to be legalized. Skepticism About Assisted Death counters this trend by bringing together fifteen original essays from distinguished philosophers who offer critical perspectives on assisted death.

The debate about assisted death involves significant moral and conceptual questions surrounding autonomy, well-being, dignity, disability, and the internal morality of medicine. This volume features contributions from leading scholars from diverse philosophical backgrounds, offering rigorous analysis of both the morality of assisted death and its policy implications. The volume is divided into two parts. The first part examines foundational issues including equality, the sanctity of life, killing versus allowing to die, and the right to life. The second part explores concerns about disability discrimination, informed consent, psychiatric euthanasia, advance directives, terminal illness definitions, and conscientious objection.

Skepticism About Assisted Death (Routledge Press) is essential reading for philosophers, bioethicists, medical professionals, legal scholars, and policymakers seeking a comprehensive understanding of arguments against assisted death in contemporary debate.” The contributors are: Christopher Tollefsen, Daniel Sulmasy, Quinn Hiroshi Gibson, Ana Iltis,  Megan Fritts,  Scott Kim, Xavier Symons, Elizabeth Barnes, Matthew Shea, David Hershenov, Helen Watt, Joseph Stramondo, Matthew Barker, Rob Wilson, and Olivier Rey.

The Buffalo News Opinion Column (Another Voice/Healthcare) published an essay co-authored by Phillip Reed, titled "Professional medicine should not endorse assisted suicide." The article is about how the Medical Society of the State of New York's (MSSNY) endorseed assisted suicide legislation for the first time. While some state medical societies have adopted positions of neutrality with respect to assisted suicide, the MSSNY is the first to support such legislation. Read the article here.

“Is abortion wrong? This is the central question addressed by The Routledge Handbook of Abortion edited by Molly Gardner and Romanell Center Fellow Perry Hendricks. The collection includes papers by four Romanell Center Fellows: Stephen Kershnar’s “The Rights of Mothers”; David Hershenov’s “The Minimal Metaphysics Needed for a Pro-Life Ethics”; Rose Hershenov’s “Conjoined Twins, Biological Individuation, and the Metaphysics of Abortion”; and, Perry Hendricks’ “Two Arguments for Abortion”. The volume brings together leading philosophers offering a diversity of perspectives on the ethics of abortion. Topics covered include fetal personhood, the rights of fathers, the relationship between animal ethics and abortion, harm and abortion, arguments against abortion, and arguments for the permissibility of abortion. The volume also examines religious perspectives on abortion, including Buddhist, Christian, and Muslim approaches.

Valerie Williams (Emmanuel College) sits down with Romanell Fellow Kurt Blankschaen to talk about ethics and problems of using body mass index (BMI) as a deciding factor to offer in vitro fertilization (IVF). They discuss some recent research for teaching on private companies offering prenatal screening that is unregulated by the FDA, patient self-advocacy, and general attitudes towards what it means to be a physically and morally fit parent. Listen to the interview.