ABSTRACT
Vulnerability as a fact of individual life is ubiquitous in public discourse. The idea of vulnerability is referred to when discussing the need for protection of young children or old people, poor people or assisted suicide arrangements. Some argue that individuals should not be able to end their lives even in those cases where they can be certain to die eventually, or in cases where their being alive depends on lifelong technical support. The justification is that patients at the end of their lives are vulnerable. The fear is that such patients might make the decision to end their lives, for example, because they do not want to be a burden to their families or a drain on their families’ budgets. They may be subjected to subtle coercion by family members to let go of their lives, or by doctors who think of scarce health care resources and the beds that could be made available.In these cases, persons are vulnerable to the influence of another who does not have their interests at heart. Call this the harm to interest account of vulnerability. According to this account, the moral salience of vulnerability stems from the moral obligation we have to protect individuals minimally in the realization of their basic interests.
