Hochul Proposes Amendments to Medical Aid in Dying Act Awaiting Her Signature, Sources Say

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul wants to add a requirement that people videotape their requests for physician-assisted deaths, one of several conditions she’s put forward to sign the hotly debated Medical Aid in Dying Act.

The Democratic governor proposed the amendments to the Legislature late last month, according to two people briefed on the negotiations but not authorized to speak publicly about them. Talks are ongoing, the people said.

The amendments are Hochul’s first foray into the wrenching debate over the topic, which has prompted lawmakers to share personal stories that touch on religious faith, individual liberty and their own experience caring for dying loved ones.

“I hear from a lot of people on that issue,” Hochul told reporters recently. “There are strong views on both sides of the spectrum — intense views on this. And I’m conscious of that, and it’s going to be a very weighty decision on me.”

Hochul is also pushing to create a seven-day waiting period for terminally ill patients who seek life-ending drugs from physicians. Another proposed provision would require all patients who ask doctors to help end their lives to undergo a mental health evaluation by a psychiatrist.

The governor also wants to restrict the practice to New York residents. And instead of having the bill become law immediately after her signature, she has proposed delaying its effective date by a year.

The Medical Aid in Dying Act is one of more than 200 bills that requires action by Hochul before the end of the year. It’s unclear whether her proposed changes – which are called chapter amendments and must later be approved by the state Legislature – will be acceptable to lawmakers who approved the bill in June.

Assemblymember Amy Paulin and state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, the bill’s sponsors, said they couldn’t comment about the bill’s status. Hochul’s spokesperson Kara Cumoletti said the governor “continues to review the legislation.”

Eleven other states and the District of Columbia have legalized the practice, with varying safeguards and restrictions. A similar bill is on Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk.

The bill’s advocates have been sending Hochul personal letters about their experiences with life-ending disease, or about how they watched loved ones suffer through the last months and weeks of their lives.

The state’s Roman Catholic bishops said the bill crosses a moral red line. Bob Bellafiore, a spokesperson for the New York State Catholic Conference, said the chapter amendments are “basically deck chairs on the Titanic.”

“They don’t change the fundamental truth that this bill sanctions suicide, diminishes medicine forever and is guaranteed to lead to tragedies, mistakes and unintended consequences that the governor will be responsible for,” he said.

The Catholic Conference organized a candlelight vigil scheduled for Wednesday night outside the Executive Mansion, which is Hochul’s official residence in Albany. Bellafiore pointed out that the American Medical Association opposes physician-assisted death in its code of ethics.

Supporters of the bill have held their own rallies at the State Capitol and in New York City. Proponents include other physician groups, including the Medical Society of the State of New York.

Corinne Carey, senior campaign director for Compassion & Choices, the main advocacy group supporting the legislation, said the bill already includes numerous safeguards.

No other states require a videotaped message of a patient’s request to end their life, Carey said, but other states have instituted waiting periods.

Under the bill as passed, a patient makes the request for life-ending medication. Two physicians must then certify that the patient has an irreversible, incurable illness or condition with a prognosis of six months or less to live. A mental health evaluation is required if either physician believes the patient may lack decision-making capacity.

Two witnesses who aren’t related to the patient, aren’t in line for an inheritance and don’t work for a nursing home where a patient receives care must also sign as witnesses to the patient’s written request. The patient is then given a lethal dose of drugs to self-administer.

“We’ve been working on refining this bill for 10 years,” Carey said. “I am truly grateful that the governor’s office is engaging with this bill in good faith, and I, and I really do trust that the three sides will come to the right decisions.”

Story by Jimmy Vielkind/New York Public News Network

Image Credit: Susan Watts/Office of the Governor