ALBANY, New York — Gov. Kathy Hochul’s tortured decision to sign legislation that will allow some terminally ill New Yorkers to obtain life-ending medications caps a contentious, decade-long debate over the issue.
But the governor’s move was blasted by the Catholic Church and even sparked blowback from aid-in-dying advocates due to additional restrictions Hochul insisted on adding to the law.
The final deal, which limits access to patients with less than six months to live, includes some controversial safeguards that advocates fought and say will make it the most restrictive such measure in the country. Thirteen states now allow doctors to prescribe life-ending medications for terminally ill patients, with Illinois enacting such legislation last week.
The Catholic governor said she wrestled with the decision for weeks, but ultimately spoke with advocates — some of whom were terminally ill — whose personal stories swayed her to sign the measure.
“I can’t stand here — even as a Catholic — and say I can’t allow someone else to do something that I perhaps would not do. I cannot stand in their way,” Hochul said to POLITICO on Wednesday. “I’m hoping that [our faith leaders] give me some grace to pray for me — as all of them said they would do — as we continue to focus on issues affecting the living.”