New York Biomedical Roundtable

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New York Biomedical Roundtable

New York Biomedical RoundtableNew York Biomedical RoundtableNew York Biomedical Roundtable
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About Us

Who

New York Biomedical Roundtable is an organization of health care professionals affiliated with medical hospitals and educational institutions in New York who oppose legislation currently pending before the NY State Assembly (A995/S2445) which would legalize Physician Assisted Suicide (PAS), commonly called "Medical Assistance in Dying" (MAiD). Our members are affiliated with institutions such as the Columbia Vagelos College of Physicians & Surgeons (VP&S) and New York Presbyterian Hospital (NYP).

130+-->> ?

50 Active Members at Launch

Why

We believe Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS) legislation:

  • Violates our commitment to help rather than harm patients
  • May irreversibly impair the physician-patient relationship


As healthcare professionals who have devoted our lives to our patients, we are committed to providing them with every means to alleviate suffering. However, once a physician exercises the power to kill, trust between patient and physician is irretrievably lost.


Evidence is growing that all forms of Physician Assisted Suicide (PAS) rapidly extend to those patients who most need comfort and support, rather than physician assistance to end their life. In every jurisdiction where PAS has become law, the ‘slippery slope’ has allowed non-terminal diagnoses, such as loneliness, disability, and even financial insecurity to be included as justification for assisted suicide. Those disadvantaged are most vulnerable. Even psychologic suffering is now up for a vote in Canada. 


Our objective is also to support and protect those who feel that Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS) violates our oath as physicians and our commitments as healthcare professionals. We come from all sectors of the health care system and include those with religious faith and those without.


We do understand that the proponents of such legislation mean well (the NY bill is called the Compassionate Care Act). The problem is that in every jurisdiction where such legislation exists, the ability to commit suicide even without death being imminent has become possible.

What

Our network pursues three key objectives:


  1. First, we strive to protect and support those ethically opposed to PAS from being required to dispense life-ending medication at our hospitals, knowing that it might be difficult for NYP professionals to refuse to parti cipate in this practice once legalized.
  2. Second, we are committed to providing the effective alternatives of palliative care and counseling. We point to jurisdictions in various US states and several countries where it has been documented that patients have been accepted for PAS solely for hopelessness from disability, financial insecurity, and even loneliness. 
  3. Third, we seek to advise New York legislators about the damage that can accrue from legalizing PAS, from the perspective of healthcare professionals. While the 2023 New York Assembly session concluded without the bill being brought to the floor, we fully anticipate activity to accelerate in the next 2024 session. We are currently being apprised of action in Albany and elsewhere by several groups who follow legislative activities.

How


  1. Our strength will be in numbers! Please join our network and share our cause with colleagues who are of like mind, so that support will grow. Your name and contact information will be kept confidential. We will share periodic updates and discuss progress.
  2. Donations to support internal communications, such as mailing services and Zoom calls, can be considered as follows: Physicians and senior academic officials $100; faculty $50; residents, students and paraprofessionals $20. Since we are a 501(c)(4) organization, contributions are not tax deductible. You can donate via PayPal.

Our Board of Directors

Eve Slater, MD

Diane E. Meier, MD, FACP, FAAHPM

Jonathan M. Barasch, MD, PhD

President

  • Professor of Clinical Medicine at the VP&S
  • Attended on NYP general medicine wards for 35+ years
  • Supervises residents in the NYP outpatient department
  • Alpha omega alpha graduate of VP&S
  • First woman Chief Resident in Medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School
  • Senior Vice President at Merck
  • Senior Vice Preside

President

  • Professor of Clinical Medicine at the VP&S
  • Attended on NYP general medicine wards for 35+ years
  • Supervises residents in the NYP outpatient department
  • Alpha omega alpha graduate of VP&S
  • First woman Chief Resident in Medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School
  • Senior Vice President at Merck
  • Senior Vice President at Pfizer 
  • Assistant Secretary for Health of the US Department of Health and Human Services (2001-2003)
  • Mother of two sons and grandmother of five

Jonathan M. Barasch, MD, PhD

Diane E. Meier, MD, FACP, FAAHPM

Jonathan M. Barasch, MD, PhD

Treasurer

  • Lambert Professor of Medicine, Urology, & Pathology
  • Leads a lab conducting translational research on kidney development and damage
  • Discovered a protein marker for acute kidney injury
  • Studies animal models of kidney development
  • Serves patients with kidney disease on hospital rounds and consultation

Maria De Miguel, MD, MS

Diane E. Meier, MD, FACP, FAAHPM

Diane E. Meier, MD, FACP, FAAHPM

Secretary

  • Associate Professor of Medicine at CUIMC
  • Director of Ambulatory Education
  • Associate Program Director of Columbia Medicine Residency
  • Director, Generalist-Primary Care Residency Pathway 
  • Mailman School of Public Health, Masters in Epidemiology, '12
  • Internal Medicine Residency and Chief Residency, NYP/Columbia, '09
  • University of Maryland 

Secretary

  • Associate Professor of Medicine at CUIMC
  • Director of Ambulatory Education
  • Associate Program Director of Columbia Medicine Residency
  • Director, Generalist-Primary Care Residency Pathway 
  • Mailman School of Public Health, Masters in Epidemiology, '12
  • Internal Medicine Residency and Chief Residency, NYP/Columbia, '09
  • University of Maryland School of Medicine '06
  • Princeton University, BA Art and Archeology, '00
  • Mother of 3 wonderful kids 
  • Painter, gardener, yoga enthusiast

Diane E. Meier, MD, FACP, FAAHPM

Diane E. Meier, MD, FACP, FAAHPM

Diane E. Meier, MD, FACP, FAAHPM

Secretary

  •  CEO of the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC.org), a national organization devoted to increasing access to quality palliative care for people living with a serious illness and their families in the United States.
  • Under her leadership the number of palliative care programs in U.S. hospitals has more than tripled in the last 

Secretary

  •  CEO of the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC.org), a national organization devoted to increasing access to quality palliative care for people living with a serious illness and their families in the United States.
  • Under her leadership the number of palliative care programs in U.S. hospitals has more than tripled in the last 10 years.
  • She is co-director of the Patty and Jay Baker National Palliative Care Center; Professor of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine; Catherine Gaisman Professor of Medical Ethics; and was the founder and Director of the Hertzberg Palliative Care Institute, 1997-2011, all at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City.
  •  One of 20 People Who Make Healthcare Better in the U.S. by HealthLeaders Media 2010.
  • Member, National Academy of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences in 2013.
  • Awards include
    • Gustav O. Lienhard Award of the National Academy of Medicine, 2017
    • AHA-HRET TRUST Award, 2017
    • MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, 2008.
  • Health and Aging Policy Fellow in Washington DC in 2009-2010, working on the Senate’s HELP Committee and at the Department of HHS.
  • Over 200 peer-reviewed publications. Recent book, Meeting the Needs of Older Adults with Serious Illness: Challenges and Opportunities in the Age of Health Reform (2014).

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This organization and its website only reflect individual views; it does not reflect any institutional views, including those of Columbia Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons or New York Presbyterian Hospital.

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