Nov. 9, 2016 — A ballot measure to allow terminally ill people to take their own lives with medication prescribed by a doctor was approved by Colorado voters Tuesday.
The aid-in-dying measure requires mentally competent patients with less than six months to live to have the approval of two doctors, according to US News & World Report.
It also says doctors must discuss alternatives as well as safe storage, tracking and disposal of lethal drugs, in case a patient has a change of mind.
Oregon, Washington, California, Montana and Vermont also permit aid-in-dying. Supporters say that allowing terminally ill patients to end their lives when and how they choose gives them control, dignity and peace of mind in their final days, CNN reported.
Critics argue that doctor-assisted death is morally wrong, doesn’t require a doctor to be present at the time of death, and that doctors can might make an incorrect diagnosis about a terminal illness.
Seventeen other states and the District of Columbia are also considering aid-in-dying legislation this year, CNN reported.
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