SB 273 Summary

• Allows individuals at least 18 years old with a terminal illness (expected death within 6 months) to request medication for self-administration to end their life, subject to physician confirmation and a 15-day waiting period between first and second written requests.

• Requires two witnesses (not relatives, heirs, facility employees, or the attending physician) to attest that the patient is competent, acting voluntarily, and not being coerced.

• Mandates attending physicians to make initial determinations of terminal illness and competency, refer patients to consulting physicians for confirmation, offer counseling if depression or psychological disorders are suspected, and inform patients of diagnosis, prognosis, risks, alternatives including hospice and pain control.

• Protects health care providers acting in good faith from professional, civil, and criminal liability, and prohibits professional organizations from penalizing providers who comply with the law; allows providers to refuse participation if they transfer relevant medical records to the patient's subsequent provider.

• Makes unauthorized alteration, forgery, or destruction of medication requests, and coercion or undue influence on patients to request medication, Level 1 felonies; effective July 1, 2017.