#12 NJ residents ended their lives under Death with Dignity Law in 2019

Twelve terminally ill residents of New Jersey ended their lives in 2019 with the help of the state Death with Dignity Law, state officials said.

Six men and six women between the ages of 50 and 93 ended their lives under those circumstances between August 1 and December 31, 2019, according to a New Jersey Department of Health report. Ten of them were able to die at home.

The Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act was signed into law in April 2019, and went into effect August 1, 2019. Under the law, doctors can write prescriptions for medication that would end the life of an adult with a life expectancy of six months or less and who is considered officially terminally ill.

The law requires patients to request the medication twice verbally and once in writing, with the physician’s assistant confirming that the patient is acting voluntarily.

Seven of those who died in 2019 had cancer, three had Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), and one each had heart disease and gastrointestinal disorder.