Image courtesy of TVW
A bill that would loosen the rules under Washington’s “Death With Dignity Act” is now being heard on the other side of the State Capitol.
The changes to the original Initiative 1000 proposed in Senate Bill 5179 include reducing the wait time between a first and second oral request for the drugs given from 15 days to 7 and allowing nurse practitioners and physician’s assistants to participate as long as a doctor is the other provider. It also allows the drugs to be sent by mail or messenger, with a signature of receipt by the patient or a caregiver, so that patients in more rural areas or the many counties with no compounding pharmacies willing to voluntarily participate in the program and provide the drugs can get them without having to drive hours to pick up the prescription.
Supporters say it will reduce the barriers that leave patients unable to take advantage of their rights before they reach a point where they are unable to complete the steps, which include two oral requests and one written request. Doctor Deborah North, says this is about people who want control of their lives. “Almost all of them are on hospice,” Doctor North says, “They don’t want to die, but they know they are dying. They think of this all the time over the weeks, months and sometimes years as their disease has worsened.”
Disability rights advocate and attorney, Conrad Reynoldson, says based on his experience as a disabled person, the changes to the law are a recipe for disaster. Reynoldson says, “This would open the door to more patients potentially being pressured and/or coerced into quickly pursuing assisted suicide with little chance for a second opinion or to give it further consideration.”
This bill is due for a vote in the House Health Care and Wellness Committee on Friday, March 10th at 8:00 AM. You can watch that hearing here. There’s also a companion bill to this one waiting for a full House vote. You can watch this hearing on TVW here.
