Delaware

House Bill 140 that would allow MAID in Delaware cleared the State House during a vote in mid-April. Lawmakers voted 21-16 in favor of the measure. The opposition framed it as “narrowly cleared” but 21 to 16 in favor is a great win! The bill is now assigned to the executive committee in the Delaware Senate for consideration. We are watching you Delaware!

New York

We’re celebrating two important endorsements regarding the New York MAID legislation. First, the New York Medical Society of the State of New York amended it’s position against MAID and now ‘along with numerous other civic-minded organizations… supports  thoughtful consideration and ultimately the approval, of proposed legislation.” Their resolution further recognizes that “healthcare, including end of life care like hospice, is a human right.”

The second endorsement was the New York State Bar Association’s House of Delegates. Yay!

New Hampshire

The “Live Free or Die” state introduced the End of Life Options Act (HB1283) and for the first time ever, the bill has passed out of the state House of Representatives and has successfully crossed over to the state Senate. If passed, this would allow residents of New Hampshire to become the 11th state to allow MAID. Kudos to the New Hampshire Alliance for End of Life Options (https://www.nhendoflifeoptions.org/) for all their great work on moving this forward.

And on the Federal level

This news from the Compassion & Choices website:

“Last week … the introduction of the Patient Access to End of Life Care Act by Rep. Brittany Petterson marked a critical stride toward overturning the Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act. This antiquated legislation, which was implemented in 1997 just after the Oregon Death with Dignity law went into effect, prevents federal funding from being used to pay for medical aid in dying. Although overcoming this barrier will be a lengthy endeavor, it is an essential step toward rectifying inequities and integrating medical aid in dying into standard medical care.”