About this episode
<p>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.<br> </p> <ul> <li><strong>SOURCES:</strong> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.governor.ny.gov/about-governor-hochul" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kathy Hochul</a>, governor of New York.</li> <li><a href="https://doulagivers.com/meet-suzanne/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Suzanne O'Brien</a>, death doula, founder of Doulagivers Institute.</li> <li><a href="https://web.stanford.edu/~alroth/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Al Roth</a>, economist at Stanford University.</li> <li><a href="https://gufaculty360.georgetown.edu/s/contact/00336000014TpfuAAC/daniel-p-sulmasy-phd" rel="noopener noreferrer">Daniel Sulmasy</a>, physician, philosopher, director of the Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University.</li> </ul></li> </ul> <p> </p> <ul> <li><strong>RESOURCES:</strong> <ul> <li><a href="https://amzn.to/4ek4g8A" rel="noopener noreferrer"><i>Moral Economics: From Prostitution to Organ Sales, What Controversial Transactions Reveal About How Markets Work</i></a><i>, </i>by Al Roth (2026).</li> <li>"<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/09/nyregion/assisted-suicide-medical-aid-in-dying.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">New York Moves to Allow Terminally Ill People to Die on Their Own Terms</a>," by Grace Ashford <i>(New York Times,</i> 2025).</li> <li><a href="https://amzn.to/44fxsJm" rel="noopener noreferrer"><i>The Good Death: A Guide for Supporting Your Loved One through the End of Life</i></a><i>, </i>by Suzanne O'Brien (2025).</li> <li><a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691140971/the-future-of-assisted-suicide-and-euthanasia" rel="noopener noreferrer"><i>The Future of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia</i></a><i>, </i>by Neil Gorsuch (2009).</li> </ul></li> </ul> <p> </p> <ul> <li><strong>EXTRAS:</strong> <ul> <li>"<a href="https://freakonomics.com/podcast/make-me-a-match-update/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Make Me a Match (Update)</a>," by <i>Freakonomics Radio </i>(2023).</li> <li><a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdMQ0RUWCXYQNI0sdz2kj46nOL-diutRkjJ8WxJIXp0n2EHaA/viewform" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sign up here</a> to pre-screen our new video show.</li> </ul></li> </ul><br/> <p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.</p>