Assembly Passes Medically-Assisted Death Bill

ALBANY—After more than a decade of gridlock, the New York State Assembly passed the Medical Aid in Dying Act (A.136/S.138) on Tuesday, April 29, Speaker Carl Heastie and Health Committee Chair Amy Paulin announced.

Under this bill, mentally competent, terminally ill adults with an independently confirmed prognosis of less than six months to live can request self-administered medication for aid in dying. Patients must make oral and witnessed written requests, and obtain confirmation of their mental competence from at least two physicians.

Health insurers are forbidden to recommend or provide information on medical aid in dying without an explicit request to do so, and the bill’s stipulation that medically-assisted death is not legally considered suicide will prohibit life insurers from denying coverage. Patients and physicians are also provided with legal protections, including the right to refuse participation in assisted death.

The bill must still pass the state Senate and obtain Governor Kathy Hochul’s signature, but the fact that the Assembly brought it to a vote indicates that supporters believe it stands a good chance of enactment. If so, New York will join 10 states and the District of Columbia in legalizing medical aid in dying.