Copy

Newsletter

February 1, 2022
This Issue's Contents

Legislative Update
2022 Poll Results: Arizonans Strongly Support MAID Legislation
Calling all Arizona Physicians to Sign Letter to Legislators
George F. Will, Pro-MAID Libertarian-Conservative
The Importance of Family in Your End of Life Plan

Upcoming Events
Donate and Your Gift will be Matched!

 

Legislative Update

Our Medical Aid-in-Dying bill, SB1486, terminally ill individuals, end of life options was just introduced in the Senate with Senator Stephanie Stahl Hamilton as our prime sponsor. With her are 6 cosponsors!

It next will go to Senate President Karen Fann who has until sometime in February to send it to a committee.

One bill down and one to go, as we are waiting for our bill to be submitted to the House of Representatives where it will be assigned it’s house number and distributed to a committee by the Speaker of the House, Rusty Bowers from LD 25.

Here's a link to follow along as it (hopefully) progresses: https://apps.azleg.gov/BillStatus/BillOverview/77440?SessionId=125

And here's the actual text of the bill: https://azendoflifeoptions.org/legislation-text/

Join our Facebook page to stay up to date on its progress: https://www.facebook.com/groups/270332658192217

 
Arizonans Strongly Support MAID Legislation
By Stu Burge, Volunteer

If you believe in medical aid in dying, you’re in good company. A brand-new statewide survey confirms robust public support for the passage of a MAID law in Arizona.

The just-released independent survey concludes that fully 60 percent of Arizona voters would support a law allowing qualified terminally ill patients to hasten their own deaths by ingesting a medication prescribed by a healthcare professional. Significantly, only 13 percent of participants say they are opposed to MAID.


Here is the question they were asked.Do you support or oppose a proposed law that would allow terminally ill persons to take a medication that would end their own lives as long as two doctors certify that the person is terminally ill and is mentally competent? The law would also require that the ill person obtain a doctor’s prescription for the medication and administer it themselves. In this way, the patient would be in total control of their end-of-life decision.”

In a refreshing change from hyper-partisan politics, a majority of Arizona Republicans, Democrats, and Independents all support the proposed law. That support extends to most other demographic groups as well, including gender, age, major religions, level of education, ethnicity, income level, and geographic area of the state.


“We are delighted with the survey results,” says AZELO Chair Dwight Moore. “It’s truly encouraging to confirm that three-in-five Arizona voters want the legal right to have a voice in guiding their end-of-life healthcare. Looking ahead, we will be stepping up our efforts to help members of the state legislature understand the importance their constituents place on this issue.”

This poll was conducted Jan. 11-13 by OH Predictive Insights.  The sample size was 855 completed surveys, with an MoE of ± 3.4%.  Participants were chosen from an Arizona Statewide Registered Voter sample. The sample demographics were weighted to accurately reflect the Arizona registered voter population by gender, region, age, party affiliation, ethnicity, and educational attainment according to statistics from a voter file from the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office as well as recent census data. 

Additional information about the survey results is available on our AZELO website www.AzEndofLifeOptions.org.

Calling all Arizona Physicians to Sign Letter to Legislators!
 
In your medical experience,
have you watched one of your
patients die badly?

Have you ever thought:
There must be a better way?
 
Many of your medical colleagues are working to educate and influence legislators in Arizona to legalize Medical Aid in Dying to give the terminally ill the choice to end suffering when the dying
 patient determines it is time.

If you are a physician, working or not, active or retired, and you want to help get Medical Aid in Dying legalized in Arizona, add your name to our letter to Legislators. To read the letter and add your name 
read more here
 

George F. Will, Pro-MAID Libertarian-Conservative 

Even conservative journalists are becoming aware of medical aid in dying. George Will, a libertarian-conservative political commentator, writes regular columns for the Washington Post and provides commentary for NBC News and MSNBC. George states that Medical aid in dying is for preventing a hideous death, not for truncating an unhappy life. 

80 years old, he is famous for debating the conservative side of world politics. Erudite, articulate, logical, and well respected, he attended Trinity College, Oxford, and Princeton.

Opinion: Medical aid in dying should not be proscribed by society’s laws or condemned by its mores
January 19, 2022
 
Medical aid in dying is for preventing drawn-out death
January 21, 2022
  
Note: all readers get free access to Washington Post digital content for up to 20 articles per month.

The Importance of Family in Your End of Life Plan
Watch this newest Kate Miller a-video, made exclusively for AZELO! 

Upcoming Events
 



Presented by Dr. Tom Fitch, this zoom presentation describes the six choices people have about how they will exit this life and makes a case for considering Medical Aid in Dying as one of the choices.

Click on this date to register. Your zoom link will be emailed to you:
Free Webinar on Sunday, February 13th at 2:00
 
Click Here to Donate and Your Gift will be Matched!
       Visit us on social media!
Twitter
Facebook
Website
LinkedIn
YouTube
Instagram
Arizona End-of-Life Options
https://azendoflifeoptions.org
Copyright © 2022 Arizona End-of-Life Options, All rights reserved.