Health
As Illinois Becomes 12th State to Legalize Medical Aid in Dying, Lawmakers Remain Divided on Issue
Terminally ill adults in Illinois will soon be able to end their lives with medical treatment.
Gov. JB Pritzker on Friday signed into law a bill legalizing medical aid in dying. It allows patients with fewer than six months to live to take life-ending treatment with a doctor’s approval.
Supporters of the measure say it gives those who are already dying a peaceful way to go.
State Sen. Linda Holmes (D-Aurora), one of the law’s sponsors, said the issue was personal.
“My father died when I was 15 of lung cancer,” Holmes said. “My mother, in 2016, died of pancreatic cancer. When you watch people you love suffer, it’s horrible to lose somebody you love when they die with a terminal illness. But watching them suffer is even worse.”
Qualifying patients would have to be at least 18 years old and have a terminal illness doctors believe will give the person fewer than six months to live. Two doctors have to agree on that diagnosis. A doctor would need to evaluate the patient’s mental capacity, looking for potential sources of coercion or influence, and let the patient know about alternative care and pain control options before writing the prescription for life-ending medication.
Patients have to be able to take the treatment themselves, as no one else can administer it to them. Once they receive the medication, they can choose not to take it or withdraw their request at any time.
Despite the restrictions, opponents have said allowing such an option would worsen health care disparities.
Lawmakers are divided on the measure, as it narrowly passed the Illinois House and Senate before heading to Pritzker’s desk.
State Rep. Bill Hauter (R-Morton), an anesthesiologist, said the bill creates safety and equity problems for patients with disabilities and low incomes.
“Those with means and those with abilities to pay for expensive treatments like cancer treatments are able to do so,” Hauter said. “Those who can’t or have disabilities or chronic illnesses are made to feel like they almost have a duty to die, made to feel like they have been a burden on society or their caregivers.”
Pritzker’s office said in a news release that the law will take effect in September, after state health officials “implement stringent processes and protections” to make sure the law isn’t abused, as some opponents have warned.
Illinois joins 11 other states, including California and Colorado, with similar life-ending options for terminally ill patients.
