Disability activists in the US are worried that the death of Terri Schiavo may set a precedent for how they will be treated, according to the Washington Post. “The right wing wants to kill us slowly and painfully” with limits on government assistance, says the founder of the disability group Not Dead Yet, Diane Coleman. “The left wing wants to kill us quickly and call it compassion.”

What happens if I go to the hospital and they say, ‘He’s so disabled anyway, should we do these heroic measures?'” asks William G. Stothers, of the Center for an Accessible Society, who uses a wheelchair after contracting polio 55 years ago. A 37-year-old quadriplegic, Karen Hwang, commented, “for some people, the big fear is being kept alive in this persistent vegetative state. I’m one of them. For others, it’s that somebody will put them to death prematurely.”

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