summary
Introduced
02/07/2025
02/07/2025
In Committee
02/12/2025
02/12/2025
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead
03/28/2025
03/28/2025
Introduced Session
2025 Regular Session
Bill Summary
Create new sections of KRS Chapter 311 to define terms; establish a qualified terminally ill patient's right to voluntarily request medication to self-administer to cause death; establish conditions required to make request; permit patient to rescind request at any time; permit an attending physician to provide medication; establish requirements for attending physician to inform patients and document request; require disposal of unused medications; establish residency requirements for qualified patients; require report by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services; establish provisions for contracts, insurance policies, and beneficiaries; prohibit applicability of provisions to ending a patient's life by lethal injection, mercy killing, or active euthanasia; establish that a health care provider is not required to provide medication to a qualified patient; permit health care providers to prohibit persons or entities from participating in a qualified patient's request during or on the premises of employment; prohibit reporting a health care provider to a licensing board for participating in a qualified patient's request; state that actions under this Act do not authorize lethal injection, mercy killing or active euthanasia; establish that actions under this Act do not constitute suicide or homicide; create a form for a qualified patient to make a request; create a form for an interpreter for a qualified patient making a request; create a new section of Subtitle 12 of KRS Chapter 304 to establish provisions for insurance policies and beneficiaries of qualified patients; amend KRS 507.020 and 507.030 to create an affirmative defense to a charge of murder and manslaughter in the first degree; provide that the Act may be cited as the Kentucky Death with Dignity Act.
AI Summary
This bill establishes a legal framework for patient-directed end-of-life care in Kentucky, commonly referred to as the Kentucky Death with Dignity Act. The legislation allows terminally ill, competent adult Kentucky residents to request medication that they can self-administer to end their life in a humane and dignified manner. To qualify, patients must be diagnosed with a terminal condition by an attending physician and a consulting physician, make multiple verbal and written requests, undergo potential counseling to ensure they are not suffering from impaired judgment, and demonstrate Kentucky residency. The bill includes extensive safeguards, such as requiring witnesses to the patient's request, mandating that patients be fully informed about their medical condition and alternatives, and allowing patients to rescind their request at any time. Healthcare providers are not required to participate and can establish policies prohibiting involvement in the process. The legislation explicitly states that these actions do not constitute suicide or homicide, and it protects patients' insurance policies and beneficiaries. The Cabinet for Health and Family Services is required to collect and report anonymized data about the law's implementation, and the bill amends existing murder and manslaughter statutes to provide an affirmative defense for actions taken in compliance with the act.
Committee Categories
Health and Social Services
Sponsors (4)
Last Action
to Health Services (H) (on 02/12/2025)
Official Document
bill text
bill summary
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bill summary
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bill summary
| Document Type | Source Location |
|---|---|
| State Bill Page | https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/25RS/hb408.html |
| BillText | https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/25RS/hb408/orig_bill.pdf |
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