Publisher's Synopsis
From Diane Rehm, renowned radio host--one of the most trusted voices in the nation--and best-selling author: a book of candour and compassion, addressing the urgent, hotly contested cause of the Right to Die movement, of which she is one of our most inspiring champions. What do you want when you are near the end of life? All too often, Rehm argues, this question goes unaddressed or unresolved, whether from uncertainty, from fear, or from a lack of awareness of the resources that are at hand for helping the terminally ill decide for themselves what they want to do. She argues that every human being deserves to die with dignity, and she points to the recent legislation in six states and Washington, D.C., providing citizens with the right to choose end-of-life medical aid. She examines the current debates among numerous state legislatures about whether or not to adopt similar laws. Through interviews with terminally ill patients, physicians, ethicists, spouses, and relatives (and including voices vigorously opposed to the movement), Rehm tells the moving stories of those who are personally linked to the realities of Medical Aid in Dying, including the family of Brittany Maynard, who became a public face of the movement when she chose to end her life in Portland, Oregon, in 2014. A documentary film featuring many of the interviews Rehm conducted will air at the time of the book's publication. When My Time Comes is a corrective to misconceptions and misrepresentations of end-of-life care; it is a call to action; and it is an attempt to heal and soothe our hearts, reminding us that death, too, is an integral part of life.
