8 States Considering Assisted Suicide Legislation

CV NEWS FEED // As Canada’s “Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying” broadens eligibility for those seeking assisted suicide to minors and individuals with mental health disorders, an increasing number of state legislatures in the United States are debating legislation that would legalize assisted suicide. 

In February, Canadian lawmakers revealed a suggestion before Parliament that minors be able to end their lives without parental consent. Meanwhile, the country is set to formally allow assisted suicide for mental health cases sometime this year, though public concern about misuse has managed to delay the start. Canada currently sees about 10,000 assisted suicide deaths per year, which accounts for 3% of all deaths in the country. 

In the U.S., assisted suicide is already legal in 10 states plus Washington, D.C. Despite its legality, concerns of a “slippery slope” that would lead to the targeting of vulnerable populations – including the mentally il l– are growing. 

Earlier this month, CatholicVote reported on Jennifer Gaudiani, a Colorado doctor and eating disorder specialist who has steered patients with anorexia toward assisted suicide.

Here are eight American states that have had or currently have assisted suicide laws moving through the legislative process. 

Arizona

In January, a group of Democratic state senators introduced SB 1646, which establishes physician-assisted suicide in Arizona. The bill is among a host of left-wing measures state Democrats hope to get to newly-elected Gov. Katie Hobbs’ desk. Currently, there is no movement on this bill, and with Republicans controlling both chambers of the State House, it is unlikely to pass in 2023. 

Connecticut

The Constitution State is poised to pass the “Act Concerning Aid in Dying for Terminally Ill Patients,” which enjoys popular support, including from multiple Republicans. In 2021, Connecticut Democrats were able to move the bill out of committee for the first time, and inched closer in 2022 to adopting the bill’s final language. 

CatholicVote Associate Editor Erika Ahern testified against the bill, writing about how adopting the bill would inevitably lead to abuses similar to those that have taken place in Canada and Belgium, where children as young as 14 may now choose assisted suicide:

In each of these countries, so-called “aid in dying” was initially only granted to adults, before the push to extend the “privilege” to children followed. When a culture differentiates between lives worth living and lives worth ending, the consequences to vulnerable populations—the young, the old, the sick, and the disabled—are disastrous.  

Indiana

Democratic Rep. Matt Pierce has introduced a measure to have assisted suicide legalized in the Hoosier State every year since 2017, but it’s been consistently defeated. With Republicans outnumbering Democrats in the State Senate by a 40-10 margin, and in the State House of Representatives by a 70-30 margin, the bill is likely to fail again in 2023. 

Maryland

Two measures – SB845 introduced in the Maryland Senate and HB933 introduced in the Maryland House – would allow licensed physicians to legally prescribe medication to end a patient’s life. In March, citizens offered testimony for and against the bills, which would likely be signed into law by new Democratic Gov. Wes Moore if they passed. The Maryland Catholic Conference has issued a statement slamming the bills as a slap in the face to the dignity of the most vulnerable members of society: 

At the heart of the Catholic Church’s ministry to the sick, the disabled, the elderly and those without access to adequate medical care is the recognition of the Gospel’s call to embrace the lives of those most in need of our love, care, and compassion.

While some may view this legislation as a response to the understandable fears about pain and loss of ‘dignity’ that someone diagnosed with a terminal illness might face, we insist firmly that the answer to those fears should be a demand for medical treatment that provides adequate pain management and excellent palliative or hospice care.

Massachusetts

Massachusetts lawmakers have filed measures in both chambers of the state legislature seeking to legalize assisted suicide during the 2023-24 legislative session. While a state ballot measure was initially rejected by voters in 2012, polls show voter support for assisted suicide has now risen to above 70%. New Democratic Gov. Maura Healey, who replaced Republican Charlie Baker, is expected to sign approved legislation into law. 

Minnesota

Twenty-one Democrats authored H1930, which would legalize assisted suicide in Minnesota. Supporters have used the same “bodily autonomy” argument often deployed in defense of abortion. Because Democrats control both chambers of the state legislature and the governor’s mansion, Minnesota could sign assisted suicide into law this year. 

Nevada

Nineteen Democrats in the Senate and Assembly have signed on as sponsors or cosponsors of Senate Bill 239, though Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager. D-Las Vegas, is not among them. Unlike past bills, the current bill does not even require a doctor to administer the lethal drug. Though Democrats control both chambers of the state legislature, it is not believed that new Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo would sign the bill into law should it pass. 

New York

Assisted suicide bills have been introduced in the state every year since 2015, but Democratic Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, who chairs the Health Committee, recently told the Times Sun-Union that “this is the year.” Meanwhile, Dennis Poust, the director of the New York State Catholic Conference, warned that the bill’s supposed “safeguards” will soon be removed in favor of an anything-goes philosophy: 

It will not take long for what is now being billed as an option only for people with terminal illnesses to be available to anyone at all. What we need is investments in palliative care and hospice, where people can be cared for with compassion and dignity, free of pain and fear as they reach their final days.

Rhode Island

Legislators in Rhode Island have attempted to pass assisted suicide legislation for more than 20 years. In the 2023 legislative session, the Rhode Island General Assembly is considering the “Lila Manfield Sapinsley Compassionate Care Act,” an assisted suicide bill named for a former 92-year-old state legislator who prepared assistant suicide legislation before she died. 

Virginia

SB 930, which would have legalized assisted suicide, failed to pass a Senate sub-committee in a 5-4 vote. The Senate full committee killed the bill in a 9-5 vote, with a surprising four of the majority votes coming from Democrats.