Last year, 36 died after taking drugs obtained through state Death with Dignity Act
Last year, 36 terminally ill patients in Washington state died after taking lethal doses of prescriptions obtained through the state’s new Death with Dignity Act, the Washington State Department of Health reports.
According to the report, which is required by the law, 63 patients obtained prescriptions under the terms of the Act. Of these 47 are known to have died, 36 after taking their prescriptions.
Most of the patients who died had terminal cancer and all were expected to die within six months at the time they obtained their prescriptions, the report said.
Physicians who prescribed the medications said that most patients said they were concerned with loss of autonomy and dignity as their disease progressed and with losing their ability to participate in activities that made life enjoyable.
Of the 36 who died after taking the medications, 72 percent were enrolled in hospice care and 91 percent died at home.
There was concern that the poor, minorities and the uninsured would be more likely to seek lethal prescriptions under the Act, but of the 47 who have died 98 percent were non-Hispanic whites, 89 percent had private, Medicare or Medicaid insurance, and 61 percent had some college education. The ages of the patients ranged from 45 to 95 years.
In three cases complications were reported, including one case of regurgitation and two cases of patients awakening after taking the medication, but in none of the cases were emergency medical services called to intervene.
To learn more:
- Read the Washington State Department of Health 2009 Death with Dignity Act Report.
- Read the law.
- Read additional LocalHealthGuide coverage of the Act.
Local Resources:
- Washington State Living Will Registry: www.doh.wa.gov/livingwill
- AHRQ: Advance Care Planning: Preferences for Care at the End of Life
- American Bar Association’s Commission on Law & Aging: Consumer’s Tool Kit for Health Care Advance Planning
- Aging with Dignity: Five Wishes
- National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization: Caring Connections
- AARP: Advance Directives – Planning for the Future
- AARP: Talking about your final wishes
- National Long-term Care Ombudsman Resource Center: Helpful Contacts
- Washington State Hospice and Palliative Care Organization: www.wshpco.org
Category: End-of-Life Care, Ethics
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