End of Life

"I will never give a deadly drug to anyone if asked for it, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect."

—Hippocratic Oath

The statement above is the foundational moral principle of medicine, pledged by doctors for centuries as they attempt to cure and relieve suffering without injuring the patient. It's a principle being eroded by the movement to legalize physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. When combined with an impersonal and technological healthcare system, the movement to support physician-assisted suicide has proven lethal. Prescribed suicide is an immoral slippery slope that corrupts the doctor-patient trust. Put simply, it’s dangerous. And it’s not just dangerous for the physicians and healthcare workers, but it’s also dangerous for our country, our healthcare system and for every patient.

We are committed to providing the most up-to-date information on the legislative, ethical and medical aspects of the fight against the legalization of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. We’ve compiled a variety of resources that you can use to educate yourself and others about this important issue. So get involved today: talk about the issue with your friends, write your legislators and send a letter to your local newspaper to let others know how important this issue is for your state and our country.

Specific Issues

Advance Directives

Whereas modern medicine has made available technologies that can prolong life, medical science alone cannot answer questions of whether life-sustaining technologies should be used in particular circumstances or whether such technologies are consistent with patients’ goals of care, values, and beliefs about health, life, and death.

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Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia

Since the time of Hippocrates, a fundamental tenet of medical ethics, a cornerstone of professionalism, and an expectation of the public, has been that those who profess to accept the responsibilities of providing healthcare do not deliberately kill their patients.

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Current End of Life Related Legislation

CALIFORNIA

Assembly Bill No. 15 - End of Life

After being defeated six times in regular legislative sessions and by vote of Californians, assisted suicide was pushed through an extraordinary legislative session called to address Medi-Cal funding for low-income individuals. Governor Jerry Brown signed AB-15 into law on October 5, 2015, falsely asserting it legalized suicide (which has never been illegal in California, because it is deemed to be the result of mental illness). The law went into effect on June 9, 2016. Life Legal Defense Foundation representing the American Academy of Medical Ethics in litigation challenging the End of Life Options Act in California.

COLORADO

Proposition 106 - End-of-Life Options Act

Colorado voters passed Proposition 106 which legalized physician-assisted suicide on November 8, 2016. This Act requires the prescribing physician and the health care professional dispensing aid-in-dying medication to provide the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) with information outlined by the Act, and necessary to ensure compliance with the documentation requirements of the Act. Rules have been adopted by the Board of Health describing these reporting requirements.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Act 21-577 - Death with Dignity Act of 2016

D.C. Council passed physician-assisted suicide bill, Act 21-577 on November 15, 2016 and it was signed into law on December 2016 by Mayor Muriel E. Bowser. This act allows terminally ill adults seeking to voluntarily end their life, to request lethal doses of medication from licensed physicians in the District (MD/DO). Terminally ill patients must be District of Columbia residents who have been medically confirmed to have less than six months to live.

HAWAII

Our Care, Our Choice Act

On April 5, 2018, Governor David Ige signed legislation allowing eligible terminally ill adults to request medical aid-in-dying (MAID). MAID is defined as “A safe and trusted medical practice in which a terminally ill, mentally capable adult with a prognosis of six months or less to live may request from his or her doctor a prescription for medication, which she or he can choose to self-administer to bring about a peaceful death.”1 MAID has also been referred to as physician-assisted suicide, or physician-assisted death.

NEW JERSEY

P.L.2019, c.59 - Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act

In April 2019, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed a bill which passed the state legislature to legalize Physician-Assisted Suicide. New Jersey’s Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act took effect on August 1, 2019 and is in effect. Qualified patients may request and physicians may prescribe medications under the law. New Jersey is the 8th jurisdiction to enact a death with dignity statute; one in five Americans now live where the option is available. Shortly after the New Jersey Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act went into effect, in August 2019, it was challenged in court; the legal challenge was dismissed in April 2020.

OREGON

Measure 16 - Death with Dignity Act

Death with Dignity was passed 51 percent to 49 percent in 1994 and was implemented in 1998 after an injunction, a 9th Circuit Court ruling and a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. The measure allows terminally ill Oregon residents to obtain and use prescriptions from their physicians for self-administered, lethal medications. Under the Act, ending one's life in accordance with the law does not constitute suicide. However, the law is referred to as “physician-assisted suicide” because it allows people to end their lives through the voluntary self-administration of lethal medications prescribed by a physician for that purpose.

WASHINGTON

Death with Dignity Act, Initiative 1000

Passed on November 4, 2008 and went into effect on March 5, 2009. This act allows terminally ill adults seeking to end their life to request lethal doses of medication from medical and osteopathic physicians. These terminally ill patients must be Washington residents who have less than six months to live. In particular, hospitals must have clear policies on the level of participation in Death with Dignity Act they allow, or if they prohibit participation. These policies must be shared with physicians, pharmacists, and other providers. The policies must also be made available to the public. Hospitals should also ensure any participating providers are correctly documenting their actions with the Washington State Department of Health.

VERMONT

Act 39 - Patient Choice and Control at the End of Life Act

The "End of Life Choices" act was signed into law to legalize physician-assisted suicide. Following a 10-year campaign to promote a Vermont's aid-in-dying bill, in collaboration with the local partner Patient Choices Vermont, the Vermont state legislature passed the Act in 2013. Governor Peter Shumlin signed the Act on May 20, 2013. The law went into effect immediately. Vermont thus became the third state to enact a Death with Dignity law, the first to be passed through legislation. The sunset provision on certain patient safeguards was removed by S.108 (Act 27) in May 2015.

State Legislation

Brittany Maynard's decision to end her life in 2014 through physician-assisted suicide brought this topic to the forefront across the United States, and more than 21 states now have legislation pending in their individual state legislatures. We unite with other like-minded organizations to help stop the spread of its legalization throughout our country.

You can help stop its spread by joining in our efforts. Click on the individual states below to find out more about the status of each state's current legislation.

Arizona

House Bill 2582 / Senate Bill 1384

In the 2020 legislative session, Arizona legislators introduced companion physician-assisted suicide bills (HB 2582 / SB 1384) the Arizona Medical Aid in Dying Act) as well as a separate bill, SB 1497, the Arizona Death with Dignity Act. The bills died in committee with no action taken.

Connecticut

House Bill 5420

HB5420 was introduced in March of 2020 to legalize physician-assisted suicide. A public hearing was scheduled and then canceled, due to the Coronavirus threat." Link this site for HB5420.

Testimony: Jack Pike

Florida

Senate Bill 1800

A physician-assisted suicide bill, SB 1800, the Death with Dignity Act, has been proposed for the first time in history; on March 14 the bill was indefinitely postponed and withdrawn from consideration."

Georgia

Senate Bill 291 - Death with Dignity Act

The Georgia General Assembly is considering a physician-assisted suicide bill, SB 291, the Death with Dignity Act. The bill is in Committee. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the Georgia state legislature suspended its 2020 session, and the bill will likely not advance.

Hawaii

Our Care, Our Choice Act

Indiana

House Bill 1020 / Senate Bill 446

Indiana State Representative Matt Pierce (D-Bloomington) introduced HB 1020, Indiana End of Life Options Act, on January 7, 2020. Representative Mara Candelaria Reardon has signed on to the bill as a co-sponsor. The bill was referred to the House Committee on Public Health. A bill introduced in the 2020 session, SB 446, would “prohibit euthanasia” in the state.

Iowa

House Bill 2302 / Senate Bill 2056

A pair of physician-assisted suicide bills, 2156, HF 2302, died in committee with no action taken.

Kentucky

House Bill 224

HB 224 died in committee with no action taken.

Maryland

House Bill 0643 / Senate Bill 0701

Companion End-of-Life Option Act bills, HB0643 (53 sponsors) and SB0701 (16 sponsors), were under consideration in the Maryland General Assembly. SB0701 was heard in the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee on February 28, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the Maryland state legislature adjourned early and the bills did not advance in the 2020 session.

Massachusetts

HB 1926 / Senate 1208 / Senate 2745

Sponsored by a total of 67 State Senators (20) and Representatives (47), S.1208/H.1926, the Massachusetts End of Life Options Act, advanced from the Joint Committee on Public Health on May 29, 2020, in an amended version, S.2745. The bill now moves to the (House Healthcare Finance).

Minnesota

House Bill 2152

Groups of legislators in both chambers of the Minnesota Legislature are sponsoring companion physician-assisted suicide bills, both of which were referred to each chamber’s health committee. A informational hearing on HF 2152 in the House Committee on Health and Human Services Policy took place on September 11, 2019. Bill carried over to 2020. No action was taken.

Montana

House Bill 284

Legislation was introduced in January of 2019, if passed HB284 will reverse the impact of the Baxter decision which did not legalize assisted suicide but allows it if the patient consents.

New Hampshire

House Bill 1659

A physician-assisted suicide bill for New Hampshire did not advance in the 2020 legislation session. A House Committee referred HB 1659, the New Hampshire Death with Dignity Act, for further study.

New Jersey

Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act

New Jersey’s Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act took effect on August 1, 2019 and is in effect. Qualified patients may request and physicians may prescribe medications under the law. New Jersey is the eighth jurisdiction to have a death with dignity statute. One in five Americans now live where the option is available. In the 2020 session, a group of legislators introduced a bill aiming to repeal the state’s new physician-assisted suicide statute.

New York

Medical Aid in Dying Act 2694

The New York Medical Aid in Dying Act 2694 is under consideration in Assembly and Senate committees, co-sponsored by 40 Assembly members and 13 Senators. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the New York State Legislature suspended its 2020 session and the bill did not advance.

Pennsylvania

House Bill 2033

A bill to legalize physician-assisted suicide was introduced in November of 2019 (House Bill 2033) which carried over to 2020.

Rhode Island

House Bill 7369

Rhode Island State Representative Edith Ajello (D-Providence) is again sponsoring a physician-assisted suicide bill. H 7369, the Lila Manfield Sapinsley Compassionate Care Act, was introduced in the Rhode Island General Assembly on January 30, 2020. A companion bill was introduced in the Senate on February 4, 2020.

Utah

House Bill 93

In the 2020 legislative session, Utah State Representative Jennifer Dailey-Provost (D-24) sponsored HB 93, the Utah End of Life Options Act. The bill did not advance.

Virginia

House Bill 1649

HB 1649, the Virginia Medical Aid in Dying Act, a physician-assisted suicide bill, has been heard in committee and, at the request of the bill sponsor, continued to the next session. Carried over to 2021.

Washington

Senate Bill 2419

In the 2020 session, a bill was introduced seeking to study barriers to using the Washington Death with Dignity Act (physician-assisted suicide) which would expand its practice of assisted suicide. SB 2419, in a substitute form, passed in the House of Representatives 67 to 31 and in the Senate 36 to 13. On April 3, 2020, Governor Inslee vetoed the bill citing the need for the state to conserve resources to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic fallout.

Wisconsin

Senate Bill 2033 / House Bill 552

Companion bills SB 499, AB 552 carried over to 2020. Bills died in committee with no action.

Testimonies

Play Video

John Pike, BS, PA-C, DFAAPA

21 Tuscany Hills Dr

Middletown, CT 06457

jrppac@comcast.net

Members of the committee.

My name is John Pike residing in Middletown. I am the CT State Director for the American Academy of Medical Ethics. www.ethicalhealthcare.org I’m a licensed physician assistant, practicing at St. Francis Hospital the last 27 years, most of those years in the critical care setting.

I’m again testifying in opposition, this time to HB 5420 titled “An Act Concerning Aid in Dying for Terminally Ill Patients”, a euphemism for physician assisted suicide. Except for date changes, this bill is word for word the exact same bill that was introduced the last two years, and has been rejected by the public health and judiciary committees since 2013 after overwhelming opposition testimony. Last year, Representative Steinberg stated that the bill would not be brought up this year given the short session and committee membership being the same, but here we are. To date, the American Medical Association and American College of Physicians remain opposed to physician assisted suicide.

I, and others, have repeatedly appeared here to state the danger to physicians becoming complicit in the death of patients; danger to elderly and ill patients; families of these victims and our culture at large.
Additionally, a crucial and unchanged aspect of this bill is the requirement of the person signing the death certificate to put down the cause of death as their illness rather than the fact that they committed suicide – basically for the official signer to lie.
Last year I pointed out to the committee about the emergence of euthanasia in Canada from their “medical assistance in dying” enactment. Just to be clear, this is called mission creep.
Assisted suicide in Canada was advanced a step further this last September after a Quebec Superior Court decision removed the provision that death must be “reasonably foreseeable” for euthanasia. Now they are considering extending this dangerous law to mature minors and those suffering from mental illness. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s mission creep!
Hawaii, which passed legislation two years ago, is considering expansion bills to grant prescription-writing authority to registered nurses, to allow consultation by telehealth and to remove waiting periods. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s mission creep!
Since last year’s hearing here, the National Council on Disability released to the President of the United States its report documenting the dangers, biases, and flaws in assisted suicide concluding that “states should not legalize any form of assisted suicide or active euthanasia”.
Where assisted suicide is legal, it cheapens life and limits options. The previously noted report by the National Disability Council states: “when assisted suicide is legalized…. it immediately becomes the cheapest treatment. Direct coercion is not necessary. If insurers deny, or even simply delay, approval of expensive life-sustaining treatment, patients can be steered toward hastening their deaths.”

A month ago, the Concord Mirror in New Hampshire stated about a proposed physician assisted suicide bill that it “goes against the very essence of who we are as citizens… If we want to show that we value the lives of at-risk teens, the elderly, people with disabilities and veterans who have fought for our country, we should be focusing our energy on providing them with care, not with death”.

I have no doubt in my mind that Compassion and Choices, formerly the Hemlock Society, would like to wear you down year after year so that you will pass this dangerous law. Please do not give in. Do what is right and safe for society.

Written Testimony of Dr. Bill Lawton, June 25, 2019:

Testimony Opposing the End of Life Options Act (S. 1208 and H. 1926) before the Joint Committee on Public Health, June 25, 2019 at the Massachusetts State House. William J. Lawton, M.D. FACP

Dear Senator Comerford, Representative Mahoney and Distinguished Members of the Joint Committee on Public Health:

I am Dr. William Lawton, a doctor in Internal Medicine and specialist in kidney diseases and hypertension. I have cared for patients facing end of life decisions for 50 years. I live in Sutton, MA and am strongly opposed to legislation legalizing the End of Life Options Act (previously referred to as physician assisted suicide (PAS) and doctor prescribed suicide (DPS).

I have been privileged to present written testimony to this Committee in 2013, and personal oral testimony on October 27, 2015. At the time of my second oral testimony to this committee on Sept 26, 2017, I reported a major change in my health. In June 2017, I received the diagnosis of incurable Stage IV cancer of the pancreas and spoke with new perspective and commitment in my opposition to PAS. The two-year survival rate of stage 4 pancreatic cancer is less than 10%.

Since I am unable to be present at the Massachusetts Statehouse on June 25th to provide my testimony personally, I am providing my written testimony for you today. Since May 16, 2019 I have entered a new stage in my two-year journey with pancreatic cancer. I am now on hospice and palliative care.

Even with my daily battles with pancreatic cancer, I am grateful to be alive today! Over the past two years I have received excellent and compassionate care from Dr. Venu Bathini and the oncology and palliative team at U Mass Memorial in Worcester. Combined with the affiliation and care through The Dana Farber Institute, my life has been extended and progress is being made daily through research in the treatment of this aggressive cancer. During this challenging past month, I’ve appreciated the support and encouragement of the VNA Care Hospice team. Daily I have a new perspective as I think about the arguments made by proponents for the End of Life Options Act and am more resolved than ever that medicine, treatment, research and palliative care offer LIFE options that far outweigh providing pills to prematurely end life.

Over the past 24 months, I have experienced a life full of purpose, contentment and joy investing in the lives of my wife, our children, six grandchildren, family and friends from around the world. If my life had ended prematurely, I would have missed out on many special occasions and celebrations – grandchildren’s concerts and sporting events, holidays and birthdays. This past month I was able to celebrate my 54th wedding anniversary. Most of all I have had the privilege of investing in the lives of loved ones and passing on the legacy, wisdom and values important to me. There have been hospitalizations from the side effects of the treatments and suffering of the pancreatic cancer itself, but I truly value the quality time and am so thankful for the gift of life.

My final plea to the Joint Committee of Public Health would be to oppose legislation legalizing the End of Life Options Act. Great strides are being made daily in cancer research that instill hope for breakthrough in cures and improved treatment to provide longer, quality life for cancer survivors. Patients would benefit by additional support to strengthen education for end-of-life care in our medical and nursing schools and assure that palliative care and hospice are available to all in our Commonwealth, regardless of economic status, disability, race, or ethnic background.

Respectfully and gratefully submitted,

William J. Lawton, M.D., FACP
5 Point Way Sutton, MA 01590-1801

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