May 30, 2025
Last night, SB 1950 was passed in the Illinois House of Representatives. This bill which will go to the Illinois State Senate for consideration today enshrines in law the right to end one’s life with physician involvement and approval.
I have to ask why, in a time when growing understanding of the deteriorating mental health of the U.S. population – and particularly among our youth – caused the country to create the 988 mental health crisis line, we would want to take this step to normalize suicide as a solution to life’s challenges. While the bill sets parameters for assisted suicide, the data from places where assisted suicide is available are clear. Rates of all suicide went up after the passage of such legislation. These rates are already unacceptably high, and proposed cutbacks in medical care funding will add to the burden faced by those contemplating suicide…