First report on WA “Death with Dignity” lawWashington State Department of Health 2009 Death with Dignity Act Report: “Washington’s Death with Dignity Act allows terminally ill adults seeking to end their lives in a humane and dignified manner to request lethal doses of medication from medical and osteopathic physicians. These terminally ill patients must be Washington residents who have six months (180 days) or less to live. In this report, a participant of the act is defined as someone to whom medication was dispensed under the terms of this law. This report focuses on the 63 participants for whom medication was dispensed between March 5, 2009, when the act became law, and December 31, 2009. It includes data from the documentation received by the Department of Health as of February 3, 2010.”
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