Laws that would allow doctors to prescribe life-ending medication to terminally ill patients are being considered once again in Michigan.
House Democrats unveiled last month to create a 鈥淒eath with Dignity Act,鈥� following a by Senate Democrats to legalize physician-assisted death in the state.
Similar laws cover more than 100 million Americans in 14 states.
State Rep. Carrie Rheingans, D-Ann Arbor, a co-sponsor of the House package, said the bills would bring 鈥渕ore medical choice鈥� to patients.
鈥淭he point 鈥� is not to shorten somebody鈥檚 life. It鈥檚 actually to shorten somebody鈥檚 death process,鈥� Rheingans told Bridge Michigan.
The bills have been referred to the House Government Operations Committee, a move that shows Republican leadership isn鈥檛 interested in taking up the legislation, Rheingans said. With her party in the minority, she said her caucus has more time to devote to education and advocacy.
House Republicans like state Rep. Matthew Bierlein, R-Vassar, oppose the legislation, calling it a morally questionable 鈥渇ringe proposal鈥� that lacks the buy-in of health care professionals.
In its , the American Medical Association calls physician-assisted suicide 鈥渇undamentally incompatible with the physician鈥檚 role as healer.鈥� The states it opposes legislation governing the practice under the belief it interferes with the patient/physician relationship.
Polling suggests attitudes in the US are changing about medical aid in dying, with support across the political spectrum. About 6 in 10 Americans view physician-assisted death as either morally acceptable or not a moral issue, according to a .
Last year, became the first midwest state to adopt laws allowing doctors to prescribe life-ending medication to terminally ill patients. similarly adopted legislation in 2025, joining the ranks of states like California, Colorado and Montana.
鈥楬astening their death鈥�
After Oregon passed a citizen鈥檚 initiative to legalize medical aid in dying in 1994, there have been several attempts to codify the practice in Michigan.
to legalize the prescription of lethal medication to help terminally ill, competent, informed adults commit suicide in Michigan, with 71% voting against the initiative.
The state was home to one of the nation鈥檚 foremost proponents of physician-assisted suicide.
Royal Oak pathologist Dr. Jack Kevorkian, who died in 2011, aided in the . Noted in the national press as 鈥� ,鈥� Kevorkian was convicted and served a partial term for the second-degree murder of a Detroit man with ALS whose death was broadcast on 鈥� .鈥�
鈥業n the hands of the patient鈥�
Kevorkian鈥檚 physician-led methods and machines cannot be utilized under any of the legal frameworks in the US today, according to Geoff Sugarman, a strategist for the national Death with Dignity campaign. States who adopted the legislation, he said, have put control of the process 鈥渋n the hands of the patient, as opposed to in the hands of the doctor.鈥�
Under Michigan鈥檚 proposed bills, Sugarman said patients have multiple layers of protection:
Sugarman said offering patients choice can give them a sense of control in how they navigate a condition that will inevitably lead to their deaths.
鈥淚n the case of a terminally ill patient within six months of death, they鈥檙e not necessarily ending their life 鈥� they鈥檙e hastening their death,鈥� Sugarman said.
At least 11,900 patients in the US have used medical aid in dying, according to , an Oregon-based advocacy group.
A cautionary tale
Opponents to the bills worry the policy puts the administration of lethal drug dosages on the same footing as other forms of treatment, adding new cost-benefit pressures on patients, their doctors, facilities and insurers.
鈥淲e want to alleviate the suffering without eliminating the person who suffers,鈥� said Genevieve Marnon, the legislative director for Right to Life of Michigan. 鈥淲e have been proponents of good hospice and palliative care and good adequate pain medication and management.鈥�
Marnon points to Canada, whose began in 2016, as a cautionary tale. More than 16,000 Canadians used assisted dying in 2024, representing 5.1% of all deaths in the country that year and the largest count since legalization.
While the Death with Dignity campaign says Canada鈥檚 medical assistance in dying laws are more expansive than those in the US, critics like Marnon say they represent a 鈥渘atural progression鈥� to future practice and cautions against its adoption in Michigan.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a significant policy position,鈥� Marnon said. 鈥淵ou need to think through all of the ramifications.鈥�
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