On December 12, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed legislation letting healthcare providers help terminally ill patients end their lives. The measure makes Illinois the latest state to legalize physician-assisted suicide.
The measure passed the Illinois Senate by just one vote during the fall legislative session after narrowly clearing the House earlier this year. Illinois now joins states like Oregon, California, and Washington in allowing what supporters call “medical aid in dying.”
In a statement, Pritzker said the law “enables patients faced with debilitating terminal illnesses to make a decision, in consultation with a doctor, that helps them avoid unnecessary pain and suffering at the end of their lives.”
A few days later, New York Governor announced she had reached a deal with state legislators to legalize assisted suicide.
In a statement, Hochul said, “I was taught that God is merciful and compassionate, and so must we be. This includes permitting a merciful option to those facing the unimaginable and searching for comfort in their final months in this life.”
However, experience in other states shows assisted-suicide laws don’t help people who are sick and dying.
Oregon first allowed physician-assisted suicide in 1998, and official state reports have shown for years that the reasons people give most often for wanting to end their lives are loss of autonomy, decreasing ability to participate in activities that make life enjoyable, and loss of dignity.
Most patients do not express concerns about pain.
In Oregon, terminally ill patients routinely receive lethal prescriptions without being referred for psychological or psychiatric evaluation.
Last year, less than 1% of patients who received a prescription for physician-assisted suicide in Oregon were referred for a psychiatric evaluation. That’s a serious problem.
Many of these patients are lonely and feel like they are losing control over their lives because of their illness. They need counseling and support — not a prescription for deadly drugs.
In parts of the U.S. where physician-assisted suicide is legal, insurance companies have refused to pay for patients’ medical care, but have offered to cover assisted-suicide drugs.
And we have heard stories about patients in Europe and Canada being denied care or actively euthanized thanks to bad government policies.
That’s why Family Council has worked hard to block assisted suicide legislation in Arkansas.
In 2019 and 2021, Arkansas lawmakers wisely rejected very bad end-of-life laws that were flawed and fundamentally disrespected the right to life. Family Council worked closely with our friends in the legislature to stop these proposals.
Just like abortion, euthanasia and assisted-suicide are murder, and they violate the sanctity of human life.
Being pro-life means believing innocent human life is sacred from conception until natural death.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.
