Bill > HJR28

This Joint Resolution proposes an amendment to the West Virginia Constitution that would add a new section to Article III, the Bill of Rights, to explicitly protect individuals from medically-assisted suicide, euthanasia, or mercy killing. Medically-assisted suicide refers to a physician providing a patient with the means to end their own life, while euthanasia involves a physician directly administering a lethal dose of medication. The amendment clarifies that it does not prohibit the use of medication to alleviate pain or discomfort, nor does it prevent the withholding or withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment as requested by a patient or their designated decision-maker, nor does it prevent the state from carrying out capital punishment. If approved by voters in the 2024 general election, this amendment, designated "Amendment 1" and titled "Protection of persons against medically assisted suicide," would constitutionally prohibit these practices in West Virginia.