WASHINGTON (AP) - At least two terminally ill Washington, D.C., residents ended their lives last year through the District’s aid-in-dying law.
The Washington Post reports the D.C. Department of Health released a report Friday on the impact of the Death With Dignity Act that went into effect in 2017. The act requires terminally ill patients make multiple requests for the drugs, which they ultimately have to administer to themselves. At least two witnesses must attest the decision is voluntary.
The report says four cancer patients requested the fatal dose of drugs last year. Two died before they could get the drugs, which are prescribed by physicians. Health officials told the newspaper that the report may not include people who requested the fatal medication if the city didn’t receive records about the dispensing pharmacy.
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Information from: The Washington Post, http://www.washingtonpost.com
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