ALBANY, NY (AP) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday she has reached an agreement with state legislative leaders to approve a bill that would give terminally ill people the legal ability to end their lives with prescribed medication.
In an opinion piece in the Albany Times Union, Hochul said she supports the proposal but made an agreement with lawmakers to include “guardrails” in the measure before signing it into law.
Hochul, a Catholic, said she made this decision after hearing from New Yorkers “in pain and suffering,” as well as their children, while also considering the opposition from “individuals of many faiths who believe that the deliberate shortening of one’s life violates the sanctity of life.”
“I was taught that God is merciful and compassionate, and so we should be,” she wrote. “This includes allowing a merciful choice to those who face the unthinkable and seek comfort in their last months in this life.”
A dozen other states and the District of Columbia allow medically assisted suicide, according to advocates. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed legislation on Friday that will allow terminally ill residents of that state to choose to end their lives.
The New York Medical Aid in Dying Act requires that a terminally ill person who is expected to die within six months make a written request for drugs that end their life. Two witnesses will have to sign the request to ensure that the patient is not being coerced. The request must then be approved by the doctor who attends the person as well as by a consulting doctor.
The governor said the bill’s sponsors and legislative leaders agreed to add provisions to require confirmation from a doctor that the person “really had less than six months to live,” along with confirmation from a psychologist or psychiatrist that the patient is capable of making the decision and is not under duress.
Hochul also said that the bill would include a mandatory five-day waiting period as well as a written and recorded oral request to “confirm that there is free will”. Outpatient facilities associated with religious hospitals may choose not to offer the option.
She added that “this is a right given to New Yorkers only.”
A spokesman for Hochul said the governor will sign the bill into law next year, with her changes woven into the proposal.
The legislation was first introduced in 2016 but stalled for years amid opposition from the New York State Catholic Conference and other groups. The Catholic organization argued that the measure reduces the value of human life and undermines the role of the doctor as a healer.
In a statement after the governor’s announcement, Cardinal Timothy Dolan and the Bishops of New York said that Hochul’s position “signals our government’s abandonment of its most vulnerable citizens, by telling people who are sick or disabled that suicide in their case is not only acceptable, but is encouraged by our elected leaders.”
New York lawmakers approved the legislation during their rulemaking session earlier this year. Supporters said this would reduce suffering for terminally ill people and allow them to die on their own terms.