Illinois Democrat Gov. Pritzker signs assisted suicide bill into law: ‘Freedom of choice’
December 17, 2025
Illinois has become the 12th state to legalize physician-assisted suicide, as Governor J.B. Pritzker signed the End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act, into law last Friday.
The Christian Post reports that Senate Bill 1950 has been seen as a victory for “freedom and choice” by its supporters, while opponents have described the measure as “misguided.”
In a thread on X, Pritzker wrote, “Today, Illinois honors their strength and courage by enacting legislation that enables patients faced with debilitating terminal illnesses to make a decision, in consultation with a doctor, that helps them avoid unnecessary pain and suffering at the end of their lives.”
The legislation, which outlines the process for terminally ill patients to obtain physician-assisted suicide, passed the Democrat-controlled Illinois Senate earlier this year in a 30-27 vote and the Democrat-controlled Illinois House in a 63-42 vote.
According to the Christian Post, the new law requires oral and written requests for aid in dying, made only by the patient and not “by the patient’s surrogate decision-maker, health care proxy, health care agent, attorney-in-fact for health care, guardian, nor via advance health care directive.”
The written request must be done in the presence of two witnesses who can attest to the patient’s mental capacity and that the person making the request is not doing so under duress.
National Right to Life President Carol Tobias, in a statement provided to the Christian Post, said: “This law abandons people at their most vulnerable moments and sends the message that their lives are not worth living. It sets Illinois on a path where the elderly, those with a disability or struggling with serious illness may find themselves pressured — subtly or overtly — to end their lives.”
Other states that have legalized assisted suicide include California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont and Washington. It is also legal in Washington, D.C.
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