Wagner Challenges CMS Terminology and Funding Oversight on Assisted Suicide
- May 26
- 1 min read
WFFC Distinguished Chair for Faith and Freedom at Spring Arbor University, William Wagner, submitted official public comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) concerning the agency’s proposed rule addressing “Medical Aid in Dying” (MAID) within the context of federally funded hospice care. The comments were submitted in response to CMS-1851-P; RIN 0938-AV78, published at 91 Fed. Reg. 17338.
The submission urges CMS and the Department of Health and Human Services to reject the increasingly common use of euphemistic terminology surrounding physician-assisted suicide. According to Wagner, the phrase “medical aid in dying” obscures the true nature of the practice and undermines transparency in public policy and legal discourse. His comments emphasize that government agencies have an obligation to employ language that reflects objective reality rather than ideological preference.
“The rule of law depends upon truthfulness and clarity,” Wagner stated. “Government should not use terminology designed to conceal or soften the intentional facilitation of death.”
The submission also raises significant legal concerns regarding compliance with the Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act of 1997 (ASFRA), which prohibits the use of federal funds for assisted suicide, euthanasia, or mercy killing. Wagner called upon CMS to conduct a comprehensive historical audit of hospice providers operating in states where assisted suicide has been legalized. The proposed audit would examine whether Medicare-funded hospice services were used directly or indirectly in connection with assisted suicide practices.
The submission argues that meaningful oversight is essential to ensure fidelity to federal law and to preserve the longstanding ethical distinction between compassionate palliative care and the intentional facilitation of death.
Read the full comment here:
