Death with Dignity Acts

Two states have enacted Death with Dignity Acts: Oregon and Washington. These laws allow mentally competent, terminally-ill adult state residents to voluntarily request and receive a prescription medication to hasten their death. This is one of many end-of-life care options available in Oregon and Washington.

Oregon voters approved of their Death with Dignity Act in 1994 and confirmed their support in 1997. Oregon's law went into effect in 1998. The voters of Washington passed their law in 2008 and it was implemented in 2009 after no credible legal challenges.

Please read more about eligibility and the application process, the application form, as well as the statutes in Oregon and Washington. If you have additional questions, please feel free to contact us.

As required by law, each year, the Oregon Department of Human Services and Washington State Department of Health publish information about their residents' usage of their Death with Dignity Acts. Through these reports you can learn more about the underlying terminal-illnesses, reasons for requesting the medication, and how Death with Dignity as an end-of-life option works with hospices.

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You are the key to ensuring well-crafted Death with Dignity laws for all Americans. With your financial and volunteer help, the Death with Dignity National Center, a 501(c)(3), non-partisan, non-profit organization, has been the leading advocate in the death with dignity movement. Member contributions helped us pass a new Death with Dignity law in Washington, defend the Oregon law, and provide education and outreach programs for the vitality of the death with dignity movement.

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