Assisted dying services to be ‘limited’

Assisted dying services to be ‘limited’ when legalised, legal action expected
Stuff co.nz 3 August 2021
Assisted dying services for the terminally ill will be “limited” when the End of Life Choice Act comes into force in November, and health officials say legal action over the law is “almost certain”.

Ministry of Health officials have highlighted “complex and sensitive elements” to the End of Life Choice Act and incoming assisted dying regime in a briefing paper to Health Minister Andrew Little, obtained under the Official Information Act.

Among the issues canvassed in the briefing: “uncertainty” over how many people will seek assisted death, terminally ill patients having to travel for services when the law comes into effect, competing pressures in the health system, and a possible need to rewrite parts of the law to resolve “legislative issues”.

The Ministry of Health moved forward on enacting the End of Life Choice Act on Monday, appointing 11 medical experts to a statutory body, Support and Consultation for End of Life in New Zealand (SCENZ), that will manage the incoming assisted dying regime.

Under the law, which the country voted to be passed in a referendum at the 2020 election, SCENZ will develop and oversee the standards for terminally ill patients should receive when they seek an assisted death.

The ministry said in a statement that planning for the November 7 deadline to implement the End of Life Choice Act was “well underway”.

The briefing paper, provided to the health minister by Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield in January, showed there remained numerous unresolved questions and risks surround assisted dying services.
READ MORE: https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/125945156/assisted-dying-services-to-be-limited-when-legalised-legal-action-expected?cid=app-iPhone