678. Who Gets to Choose a “Good Death”?
New York is the latest state to legalize medical aid in dying. Stephen Dubner speaks with the governor who signed the law, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, a death doula — and an ethicist who thinks the very idea is wrong.
- SOURCES:
- Kathy Hochul, governor of New York.
- Suzanne O'Brien, death doula, founder of Doulagivers Institute.
- Al Roth, economist at Stanford University.
- Daniel Sulmasy, physician, philosopher, director of the Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University.
- RESOURCES:
- Moral Economics: From Prostitution to Organ Sales, What Controversial Transactions Reveal About How Markets Work, by Al Roth (2026).
- "New York Moves to Allow Terminally Ill People to Die on Their Own Terms," by Grace Ashford (New York Times, 2025).
- The Good Death: A Guide for Supporting Your Loved One through the End of Life, by Suzanne O'Brien (2025).
- The Future of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia, by Neil Gorsuch (2009).
- EXTRAS:
- "Make Me a Match (Update)," by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
- Sign up here to pre-screen our new video show.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
More description
New York is the latest state to legalize medical aid in dying. Stephen Dubner speaks with the governor who signed the law, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, a death doula — and an ethicist who thinks the very idea is wrong.
- SOURCES:
- Kathy Hochul, governor of New York.
- Suzanne O'Brien, death doula, founder of Doulagivers Institute.
- Al Roth, economist at Stanford University.
- Daniel Sulmasy, physician, philosopher, director of the Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University.
- RESOURCES:
- Moral Economics: From Prostitution to Organ Sales, What Controversial Transactions Reveal About How Markets Work, by Al Roth (2026).
- "New York Moves to Allow Terminally Ill People to Die on Their Own Terms," by Grace Ashford (New York Times, 2025).
- The Good Death: A Guide for Supporting Your Loved One through the End of Life, by Suzanne O'Brien (2025).
- The Future of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia, by Neil Gorsuch (2009).
- EXTRAS:
- "Make Me a Match (Update)," by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
- Sign up here to pre-screen our new video show.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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