DOVER, Del. (AP) - The Delaware House of Representatives has put off a vote on a bill allowing doctor-assisted suicide in the state.
The Delaware State News reports that the vote was delayed Thursday because a lawmaker reversed support for the legislation. It was the second such delay in three months.
The legislation allows an adult diagnosed with a terminal illness and expected to die within six months to request prescription medicine to end his or her life. A consulting physician would have to confirm the attending doctor’s diagnosis.
The patient would have to make both oral and written requests and would have to wait at least 15 days after the initial request before receiving the drugs.
Opponents of the measure include the Medical Society of Delaware.
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