Hochul’s Deal Limits Access to Patients with Less than Six Months to Live

By Katelyn Cordero, 12/18/2025 

ALBANY, New York — Gov. Kathy Hochul’s tortured decision to sign legislation that will allow some terminally ill New Yorkers to obtain life-ending medications caps a contentious, decade-long debate over the issue.

But the governor’s move was blasted by the Catholic Church and even sparked blowback from aid-in-dying advocates due to additional restrictions Hochul insisted on adding to the law.

The final deal, which limits access to patients with less than six months to live, includes some controversial safeguards that advocates fought and say will make it the most restrictive such measure in the country. Thirteen states now allow doctors to prescribe life-ending medications for terminally ill patients, with Illinois enacting such legislation last week.

The Catholic governor said she wrestled with the decision for weeks, but ultimately spoke with advocates — some of whom were terminally ill — whose personal stories swayed her to sign the measure.

NY Governor Kathy Hochul Seeks Changes to ‘Nightmare’ Assisted Suicide Bill

https://dailycitizen.focusonthefamily.com/ny-governor-kathy-hochul-seeks-changes-to-nightmare-assisted-suicide-bill/

New York Governor Kathy Hochul [pictured right] is requesting substantial changes to a “nightmare” bill that would turn New York into a destination state for physician-assisted suicide.

The New York Assembly approved the Medical Aid in Dying Act (AB 136) on April 29 in a 81-67 vote. The state Senate subsequently passed the bill on June 9 in a 35-27 vote.

The bill permits individuals with “an incurable and irreversible illness, with six months or less to live,” to kill themselves with a doctor’s help via a lethal cocktail of drugs.

Importantly, the bill currently contains no residency requirement, allowing terminally ill individuals from out of state to come to New York to end their lives. This provision would essentially ensure all Americans could access physician-assisted suicide.

Diane Coleman Inducted Into New York State Disability Rights Hall of Fame, Class of 2025

Sunday, December 7, 2025

In collaboration with the 2025 New York Association on Independent Living’s (NYAIL) statewide conference, the New York State Independent Living Council (NYSILC) held its sixth New York State Disability Rights Hall of Fame awards ceremony and dinner, and Not Dead Yet’s Founder and CEO, Diane Coleman, [pictured right] was the first of the night to be honored with a posthumous award “For lifelong achievements which positively impact people with disabilities in society.”

For those who couldn’t attend the awards ceremony and dinner, the Patients Rights Action Fund’s (PRAF) Executive Director, Matt Vallière, and NDY’s Executive Director, Ian McIntosh, accepted the award on behalf of Diane Coleman who passed away suddenly, last November 1, 2024.