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Episode 6 - Ozzy Osbourne, Assisted Suicide & The Value of Life

  • Writer: Peter Bogdanov
    Peter Bogdanov
  • Aug 17
  • 5 min read

By Middle Minded Podcast — Episode 6


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Ozzy Osbourne died on July 22, 2025, at age 76. Official reports attribute his death to a heart attack (out-of-hospital cardiac arrest) with coronary artery disease and Parkinson’s listed as contributing conditions. In the days just prior, his daughter Kelly Osbourne publicly swatted down viral speculation about his health and about a so-called “suicide pact” between her parents. After his death, older interviews resurfaced where Sharon Osbourne had said the couple had discussed assisted dying in the event of a devastating illness—but the official cause of death was cardiac, not assisted suicide. The rumor is not the story. The story is why the rumor caught fire—and what that says about how we face death, choice, and dignity. AP NewsPeople.com+1E! Online


What do we mean by “assisted suicide,” “euthanasia,” and MAID?


Let’s get terms straight:

  • Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) or physician-assisted death: a doctor prescribes medication; a mentally capable, terminally ill adult chooses whether to self-administer it. (This is the model in Oregon, California, etc.) OregonCDPH

  • Euthanasia: a clinician administers the life-ending drug. This is legal under strict conditions in places like the Netherlands and Belgium—and is not legal anywhere in the U.S. ReutersLibrary of Congress


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As of August 2025, 11 U.S. states + Washington, D.C. authorize some form of MAID. Delaware became the latest to pass a law in May 2025; its statute is slated to take effect in 2026. Oregon and Vermont have also removed residency requirements, allowing qualified non-residents access under their rules. Compassion & ChoicesAmericans United for LifeOregonDeath With Dignity


In Oregon’s most recent complete report, 367 people died under the law in 2023—about 0.8% of all deaths in the state that year—most were 65+ and already on hospice. That’s a tiny slice of overall mortality, but for those patients, it was everything. OregonDeath With DignityCompassion & Choices


The hardest edge: children and infants


This is the part of the conversation most shows skip. We didn’t.

  • Belgium removed age limits in 2014, allowing minors to request euthanasia under extremely narrow conditions: terminal illness, constant and unbearable suffering, capacity assessed by specialists, and parental consent required. Cases are exceedingly rare. Library of CongressThe Guardian

  • The Netherlands (which already had frameworks for adults 12+ and for neonates in dire circumstances via the Groningen Protocol) moved in 2023–2024 to allow euthanasia for children aged 1–12 with unbearable suffering and no prospect of improvement, under strict review. These are exceptional, closely scrutinized cases. ReutersPMC+1


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The U.S. does not permit euthanasia for minors or infants. Even in adult MAID states, eligibility criteria require adulthood, terminal diagnosis (≈ six months), and capacity—and the patient, not the doctor, must self-administer. CDPH


“Putting an infant to death” vs. real-world protocols

That plain-spoken phrasing captures raw moral shock—but policy is nothing like a snap judgment. The Dutch neonatal guidelines require hopeless prognosis, unbearable suffering, parental consent, and physician review committees that audit each case. The ethical frame is relief of suffering when medicine has no remedy, not convenience. Reasonable people still disagree, but precision matters. PMC


Are we “too soft” compared to the animal kingdom?

Nature can be brutal—but also full of care: animals nurture wounded offspring and elders; others abandon the weak. Using “what animals do” as a moral template for human medicine is a category error. The real question for humans—with consciousness, law, and technology—is how to align autonomy, mercy, and safeguards so we neither prolong suffering nor normalize preventable death.


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Are patients kept alive “for profits”?

Follow the money, carefully. The hospice model often improves end-of-life experience and lowers high-intensity interventions—but the industry’s rapid shift toward for-profit ownership has raised questions about incentives, quality, and oversight.


  • MedPAC estimates Medicare hospice margins around 9% (projected 2024), down from ~13% earlier—still positive. Hospice spending rose to $27.5B (FY2024). MedPACCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services

  • Investigations (e.g., The New Yorker/ProPublica) documented bad actors enrolling ineligible patients or underserving eligible ones—problems amplified by weak oversight—while nonprofit leaders cautioned against painting the entire field with the same brush. Both things can be true: hospice is essential and the system needs tighter guardrails. The New Yorker+1

  • End-of-life care remains a large slice of Medicare spending (often cited in the ~25% range for beneficiaries’ last 12 months, depending on methodology), which keeps the debate about incentives alive—literally. KFF FilesHealth Affairs

The takeaway isn’t “medicine keeps people alive for profit.” It’s: incentives shape care, so safeguards and transparency matter—especially when someone’s final weeks are on the line.


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Autonomy, dignity, and the slippery-slope fear

Skeptics worry that eligibility will expand—today’s terminal cancer becomes tomorrow’s chronic illness, then depression. The Netherlands and Canada are the usual cautionary tales cited. Data show relatively small—though rising—numbers and intense public scrutiny, particularly around psychiatric-only cases; Canada paused plans to extend MAID to primary mental illness until 2027 amid concerns about safeguards. That tension between compassion and boundary-setting is real, and it’s exactly why design details and oversight matter. The Guardian+1Government of Canada


Where we land (for now)

  1. Ozzy didn’t choose assisted suicide. He died of a cardiac event; the renewed talk stemmed from past public comments about a theoretical pact. Let’s honor the man, not the rumor. AP NewsPeople.com

  2. Adults in agony deserve real choices—and those choices must be genuinely voluntary, informed, and protected from pressure (family, financial, or institutional). Oregon

  3. Infant/child euthanasia is legal only in a few countries under extraordinarily narrow conditions; the U.S. does not allow it. When people invoke infants to argue “slippery slope,” we should answer with facts and safeguards, not slogans. ReutersLibrary of Congress

  4. Profit shouldn’t steer the last chapter of a human life. Tighten oversight where abuse exists. Fund palliative care. Make sure MAID—where legal—is one option among many, not a substitute for care we failed to provide. MedPACThe New Yorker


Practical resources & state of the law (quick guide)

  • Where MAID is authorized (U.S.): 11 states + D.C. (including CA, CO, DC, HI, ME, MT, NJ, NM, OR, VT, WA, and DE—Delaware’s law takes effect 2026). Residency waivers: Oregon and Vermont. Check current rules and waiting periods where you live. Compassion & ChoicesAmericans United for LifeOregonDeath With Dignity

  • Data snapshot: Oregon 2023—367 deaths under the Act; most had cancer, most were already in hospice. Oregon

  • International context: The Netherlands and Belgium allow euthanasia under strict review; Belgium permits it for minors in rare cases; the Netherlands expanded pediatric eligibility 1–12 under regulation in 2024. ReutersLibrary of CongressPMC


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Join the conversation

Where should we draw the line—and who gets to draw it? If you’ve faced end-of-life decisions in your family, what helped (or hurt) most? Comment on Episode 6 on YouTube, or send us a note at middleminded.us. We read everything.


Citations (key sources)

 
 
 

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