Within a single week, the governors of Illinois and New York both announced their support for physician-assisted suicide legislation.
In Illinois, Gov. JB Pritzker, a Democrat [pictured above], signed a bill legalizing the practice Dec. 12. In New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, announced Dec. 17 that she has reached an agreement with the state legislature and will sign the Medical Aid in Dying Act in January 2026.
With these developments, Illinois and New York join 11 other states and Washington, D.C., that have already authorized physician-assisted suicide [and euthanasia].
Hochul explained her decision in a personal essay published shortly before her Wednesday press conference. She noted that bodily autonomy ultimately shaped her thinking about the bill: “I have come to this as a matter of individual choice that does not have to be about shortening life but rather about shortening death,”