'Don't have time to wait': Advocates renew push for Minnesota to allow medication aid in dying

DeeDee Welles has seen what it looks like to die from ovarian cancer.

Four decades ago, she watched her energetic mother — an active volunteer, former competitive diver and near-daily tennis player — go in and out of the hospital with bowel blockages from the disease. At the end, Welles was helpless as her mother wasted away "to skin and bones" and eventually died.

Now, Welles is struggling with blockages after her own ovarian cancer diagnosis reemerged in December. She doesn't want her kids to have to watch her in agony at the end.

"I know what's coming, which is both good and bad," said Welles. "It was awful seeing her suffer; my kids will potentially see me suffer a long time. I don't believe it needs to go that way."

Welles is part of a renewed push at the State Capitol to allow terminally ill patients to seek a prescription from their doctor for medication to end their life. A proposal has been introduced in both chambers to have Minnesota join 10 other states that already allow aid in dying — including Oregon, the first state to approve the measure more than 25 years ago.

Linking it to the debate over abortion access, advocates argue Minnesotans deserve bodily autonomy at the end of their life, too.

But the proposal's reemergence at the Capitol has drawn out familiar opponents. Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life (MCCL), the state's largest anti-abortion group, says it advocates for all human life from conception until natural death.

"People who are at risk of suicide deserve our protection," said Cathy Blaeser, co-executive director of MCCL. "Those facing an adverse prognosis or the challenges of disability deserve our concern and protection no less than physically healthy and able-bodied people."

The proposal has failed to gain traction in Minnesota's divided Capitol for nearly a decade, eliciting passionate support and opposition from both parties, physicians and Minnesotans. Even with Democrats sponsoring the bill and in control of state government, its prospects are unclear this session.

"It's an option people should have if they want to. There are protections in place to make sure it's not abused," said Rep. Michael Freiberg, DFL-Golden Valley, who has sponsored the measure in the House for several years. "There are decades of data from Oregon and other states that have this on the books that show it's a safe option."

The legislation requires the person to be 18 years or older and of "sound mind" when making the decision. A doctor must determine the person has six months or less to live, and patients must attest that they've been fully informed of all of their treatment options.

Patients have to make the decision voluntarily and free of coercion. Under the bill, it's a felony for someone to pressure a terminally ill person into seeking the medication. Once they receive the prescription, patients must administer it themselves, unless they change their mind. Individual physicians and health care systems can opt out.

Nearly a quarter of people in the country live in a jurisdiction where medical aid in dying is allowed, but Minnesota has banned and criminalized the practice since the 1960s. The law has been challenged and upheld in court cases over the years.

Some Minnesotans facing a terminal illness have moved to other states that allow doctors to prescribe medication to end their life. Others have opted to go through what is known as VSED, where someone voluntarily stops eating and drinking. That process can take about 10 days.

Christina Ogata's mother chose VSED after she suffered a stroke and her quality of life diminished. She had agency in her death, but Ogata said the 12-day process was painful for her mother and family and friends who watched.

Her brother, who lived in New Mexico, took advantage of that state's 2021 aid in dying law to end his years of suffering from a neurodegenerative disease similar to Parkinson's. Ogata said they celebrated his life for several days before he took the medication, which offered him a peaceful end.

"He said, 'I need to close my eyes.' It was quiet, he did not seem anxious. His tremors went away," she said. "Everything slowed down. Eventually he let out one long, slow exhale. The doctor declared that was his last."

Opponents argue there are no safeguards in the legislation to prevent coercion, and there's no requirement that patients get a psychiatric evaluation before they receive the drug. Physicians can recommend an evaluation for a patient.

"This legislation has gone nowhere in past years, and for good reasons. Assisted suicide is a danger to all of us," said Blaeser. "Legalizing assisted suicide would pose real risks to Minnesotans."

Sen. Kelly Morrison, DFL-Deephaven, a physician, said she's carrying the bill alongside other senators in the health care profession, which is indicative of the broader support for the legislation in the medical community.

"Health care providers see people at the end of life and they see the ways some people suffer when they reach the end," she said.

Welles, who had three surgeries in the last six days related to her cancer diagnosis, still traveled to the Capitol with her sister on Thursday to plead with legislators to pass the proposal this year.

"This is the last and biggest choice we'll make," said Welles. "I don't have time to wait. This is urgent for me and so many other terminally ill Minnesotans."