Two bills—A995A and S2445A—have been awaiting final action in the New York Legislature since their introduction this past January. The New York Medical Aid in Dying Act would provide terminally ill patients with access to prescription medications they can take to hasten their death. If the law is enacted, New York would join 10 other states and the District of Columbia in making this option available.
Kaitlin Puccio of Puccio Law PLLC. Courtesy Photo
New York has a complicated history with medical aid in dying (MAiD). In the 1997 case Vacco v. Quill, the Supreme Court found that a New York state ban on MAiD (the court uses the term “physician assisted suicide” to refer to MAiD, which is now considered a distinct concept) was constitutional. This does not mean, however, that permitting it is unconstitutional, and in 2016 the New York State Assembly Health Committee approved the Medical Aid in Dying Act. It was reintroduced in 2017 when a newly elected Legislature convened and has been reintroduced every year since then. In total, the act has been introduced eight times in as many years.
