Vacco v. Quill - Impact

Vacco v. Quill established the interest of the state in prohibiting physicians from assisting in the suicide of terminally ill patients. By identifying a reasonable and compelling state interest in preventing assisted suicide, the Court removed any argument that terminally ill patients who are not on life support might have had under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The ruling also provided a precedent for states struggling to develop acceptable statutes outlawing assisted suicide. Despite this precedent, it has been extremely difficult for states in which assisted suicide has been practiced to prevent further occurrences, due in some measure to general public support for the right of the dying to control their own demise.