Aid in dying bill dead
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Bills that would have legalized physician-assisted suicide in Massachusetts have once again failed to proceed this legislative session. Similar bills had been brought forward during the previous four sessions.
For at least the fifth consecutive legislative session, bills that would open the door to doctors prescribing lethal doses for terminally ill patients were dropped from consideration by the Public Health Committee.
Bills (H 1194/S 1225) that would have legalized medical aid in dying -- sometimes referred to as doctor-assisted suicide or death with dignity -- filed by Rep. Louis Kafka and Sen. Barbara L'Italien were sent to study by the Joint Committee on Public Health, effectively spelling the end of the issue for this session. The committee confirmed that both bills were sent to study.
"We are grateful to the dozens of individuals and organizations who testified on this significant legislation during our hearing in September, as well as the many individuals who have since contacted the Committee to share their opinion -- their voices have underscored the importance and complexity of the issue before us as a committee and a Commonwealth," Rep. Kate Hogan, House chair of the Joint Committee on Public Health, said. "In coming sessions, the Committee will continue to work closely with bill sponsors to discuss how our health care system can best support patients at the end of their lives."
Supporters of medical aid in dying, who had been optimistic that the Kafka/L'Italien legislation might gain some traction this year after the Massachusetts Medical Society voted in December to reconsider its longstanding opposition to medical aid in dying and instead adopt a position of neutral engagement, said the committee's decision is a bad one for terminally ill patients.
"We are deeply disappointed that the Massachusetts legislature has referred the End of Life Options Act to study when there are already 40 years of data about medical aid-in-dying laws in six states, and polling shows more than 60 percent of doctors and 70 percent of voters in Massachusetts support this option," Marie Manis, Massachusetts campaign director for advocacy group Compassion & Choices, said. "The tragedy is terminally ill Massachusetts residents with six months or less to live will not have this option to peacefully end their suffering if they need it before the legislature revisits this issue next year."
Matt Valliere, executive director of Patients Rights Action Fund, cheered the Public Health Committee's decision and said, "assisted suicide is not medical treatment. It is bad public policy that puts a great many at risk of deadly harm through mistakes, coercion, and abuse."
Kafka told the News Service last year that he was hopeful this would be the session in which his aid in dying legislation finally emerged from committee. Supporters and opponents disagree over public support for aid in dying policies.
Compassion & Choices points to a 2014 poll conducted by Purple Strategies that found 70 percent of Massachusetts voters support medical aid in dying as an option for terminally ill adults. But Not Dead Yet, a group that opposes the policy, points to a 2013 national poll conducted by Pew Research Center that reported 49 percent of Americans disapprove of medically-prescribed fatal doses while 47 percent approve.
Massachusetts voters spoke directly to the issue in 2012, when they rejected a ballot question similar to the bill filed by Kafka and L'Italien with 51 percent opposed and 49 percent in favor, a margin of 67,891 votes.
Six states have authorized medical aid in dying: California, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington, along with the District of Columbia.
The Kafka/L'Italien bill lays out requirements that must be met before a patient can receive a lethal dose of medication. The patient must have a terminal illness reasonably judged to result in death in six months and must make the request themselves, first orally and again in writing at least 15 days later. The patient must also have two people, including one non-relative who does not work for the health care facility involved, witness the written request.
The bill also requires patients to meet with a counselor to determine if they are suffering from psychiatric or psychological conditions that may affect their judgment. And a physician cannot issue a prescription for a lethal dose without first "offering the qualified patient an opportunity to rescind the request for medication."
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