If governments are always looking for more humane methods of execution, why are heroin and other opiates never used, since they are supposedly the most blissful way to pass?

Question

If governments are always looking for more humane methods of execution, why are heroin and other opiates never used, since they are supposedly the most blissful way to pass?

In: 306

Answer 1

Opiates alone would give you a poor success rate. Most people won’t die quickly even with massive doses of morphine. You could however use them in a protocol that includes other sedatives.

If you look at MAID (medical aid in dying) in Canada, morphine is not a usual part of the protocol. In those cases, making the process confortable is one of the most important point.

The sequence goes (this is for my home province, might be different elsewhere)
1. Anxiolytic (think like Valium)
2. Sedative. Usually propofol. This is what killed Michael Jackson.
3. Neuromuscular blockade. In case one or two were not enough to have you stop breathing.