SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California lawmakers are expected to vote on legislation that would make it legal for terminally ill patients to end their lives with doctor-prescribed drugs.
The proposal being considered Thursday comes nearly a decade after similar legislation failed.
The issue gained renewed attention after the well-publicized story of Brittany Maynard, a 29-year-old San Francisco Bay Area woman who moved with her family to Oregon and ended her life in November. Maynard was suffering from brain cancer.
The bill by Democratic state Sen. Bill Monning would protect physicians from criminal prosecution for providing terminally ill adults with the option of medical aid in dying.
Opponents say some patients may feel pressured to end their lives if doctors are allowed to prescribe fatal medication.
