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Legislature should act now to provide compassion to terminally ill Minnesotans [1]

['More From Author', 'April', 'Chris Eaton']

Date: 2023-04-06  

For nearly a decade, I have advocated for the rights of Minnesotans battling terminal illnesses to have control over the end of their lives. I believe that this is the year that Minnesota should finally enact the End-of-Life Option Act to provide terminally ill patients with the right to choose when and how they die.

Earlier in this legislative session, the House and Senate acted with courage to pass the Protect Reproductive Options (PRO) Act, supporting and defending people’s right to make and act on the full spectrum of decisions available to them regarding their pregnancies and their reproductive health care without government interference.

The End-of-Life Option Act (HF1930/SF1813) is another piece of legislation under consideration at the state Capitol that guarantees individual bodily autonomy. This bill would give terminally ill patients who qualify the ability to obtain a prescription for medication that would allow them to end their lives peacefully and painlessly, surrounded by loved ones, and with dignity.

Terminally ill patients often face immense suffering, pain and loss of autonomy in the final stages of their illness. They have exhausted all available treatments and have little hope of recovery or relief from their symptoms. They want to live, but there is no longer hope for cure or remission. In these situations, the End-of-Life Option Act would provide patients with a measure of self-determination that would provide the peace of mind that comes from knowing they have options should their suffering become intolerable.

When I was in the state Senate and co-authored the End-of-Life Option Act, we heard from Minnesotans from across the state — some whose loved ones had suffered terribly and others who were facing their own terminal disease. They wanted nothing more than the right to leave this world on their own terms, rather than succumb to the cancer or ALS that had already taken so much.

More than 25 years ago, in 1994, Oregon passed the nation’s first law allowing mentally capable terminally ill adults to have the end-of-life care option to peacefully end unbearable suffering. Today, more than one in five people in the U.S. — 22% — live in a jurisdiction where medical aid in dying is authorized, including 10 states and the District of Columbia. Minnesota’s End-of-Life Option Act is modeled after the Oregon Death with Dignity law. Both data and experience have shown that the law works as designed, and that concerns of abuse or coercion are unfounded.

Opponents of the End-of-Life Option Act argue that it is improper to allow doctors to help their patients end their lives. But the majority of physicians actually support medical aid in dying. They understand that while modern medicine has enabled them to extend life, sometimes longer than desired, it cannot relieve all pain and suffering. They agree that it is a physician’s role as healer to support their patients as they confront death in the way best reflects the patient’s — not the doctor’s — values and priorities.

The End-of-Life Option Act includes strict eligibility criteria. To qualify, an adult must be diagnosed with a terminal diagnosis and a prognosis of six months or less to live. They would have to make two oral requests, submit a written request and be fully evaluated by two clinicians who would determine eligibility, including whether the patient is capable of giving informed consent and acting of their own volition. Patients who lack mental capacity — such as those suffering with dementia — would not qualify.

The End-of-Life Option Act is just that — an option. No individual — doctor, nurse, pharmacist or patient — is required to participate.

Currently, Minnesota state law makes this end-of-life option a crime, forcing some to endure unnecessary terminal suffering. But lawmakers have the opportunity to change that. The DFL-controlled Legislature should show they are listening to the large majority of Minnesotans who support this legislation. They need to act with compassion and urgency and pass this legislation now.

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[1] Url: https://minnesotareformer.com/2023/04/06/legislature-should-act-now-to-to-provide-compassion-to-terminally-ill-minnesotans/

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