Aid-in-Dying: Not So Easy in California

Starting June 9, terminally ill Californians with six months or less to live can request a doctor’s prescription for medications intended to end their lives peacefully. But it won’t be easy. California’s End-of-Life Option Act creates a long list of administrative hurdles that both patients and their doctors must clear. For instance, a person must make multiple requests for the drugs, orally and in writing, and provide a written attestation within 48 hours of taking the medication. He must be able to take the drugs himself, without help, to qualify. Two doctors must confirm the diagnosis, prognosis, and ability to make medical decisions, and the individual California residency. “This will not be an on-demand service,” says Sarah Hooper, executive director of the UCSF/UC Hastings Consortium on Law, Science and Health Policy. California will be the fifth state to implement an aid-in-dying law, and the Golden State’s version of it is considered the most stringent, says Sean Crowley, spokesman for the advocacy group Compassion & Choices.

Source/more: Kaiser Health News

David Wingate is an elder law attorney at the Elder Law Office of David Wingate, LLC. The elder law office services clients with powers of attorneys, living wills, Wills, Trusts, Medicaid and asset protection. The Elder Law office has locations in Frederick and Montgomery Counties, Maryland.