Massachusetts's End of Life Options Act (2024)

By Jessica Gillespie, MSLIS Long Island University

Nolo was born in 1971 as a publisher of self-help legal books. Guided by the motto “law for all,” our attorney authors and editors have been explaining the law to everyday people ever since. Learn more about our history and our editorial standards.

Each article that we publish has been written or reviewed by one of our editors, who together have over 100 years of experience practicing law. We strive to keep our information current as laws change. Learn more about our editorial standards.

In recent years there has been a dramatic increase in the number of states considering death with dignity laws. Sometimes called "assisted suicide," "right to die," or "medical aid in dying" initiatives, these laws make it possible for terminally ill patients to use prescribed medication to end their lives peacefully rather than suffering a painful and protracted death.

The catalyst for greater national attention to this issue was 29-year-old Brittany Maynard, a woman diagnosed with terminal brain cancer who moved from California to Oregon to end her life in 2014. Oregon because California had not yet passed its aid-in-dying law, and Oregon is one of just a few states that allowed terminally ill patients to legally end their lives.

Massachusetts's 2023-2024 End of Life Options Act

Massachusetts lawmakers have tried to pass a death with dignity law for years. In the 2023-2024 legislative session, the Massachusetts legislature again considered a death with dignity bill, called the Massachusetts End of Life Options Act (SD265 in the state senate and HD2342 in the house of representatives). Although in a recent poll 77 percent of Massachusetts residents supported medical aid in dying, the bill failed to advance before the legislative session ended. If it had passed, the law would have functioned much like Oregon's Death With Dignity Act, allowing terminally ill patients who met certain requirements to request and use life-ending medication.

Death With Dignity in Massachusetts's Courts

At the same time Massachusetts lawmakers were working to pass a medical aid in dying law, a case on the issue was also winding its way through the state's courts. The suit was originally filed in 2016 by a pair of doctors: one who had been diagnosed with incurable prostate cancer and wanted the option of obtaining life-ending medication if his condition worsened and another who wanted the option of prescribing life-lethal medication to his patients. The two plaintiffs argued that the state's manslaughter statute should not apply to physicians who prescribe aid-in-dying medication to their patients.

The case eventually went before the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts. On December 19, 2022, the court ruled that medical aid in dying was not an "individual right" under the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights and that the issue should instead be decided by the state legislature. (See the full Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts decision in Kligler v. Attorney General.)

Advocating for a Medical Aid in Dying Law in Massachusetts

Citizen groups are continuing to work to legalize aid in dying in Massachusetts. If choice at the end of life is important to you, here are some things you can do:

• Contact your representatives in the legislature and encourage them to support death with dignity in Massachusetts.
• Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper.
• Tell your family, friends, health care providers, and others why you believe terminally ill patients should be allowed to choose aid in dying.
• Search for—or start—a community advocacy group. The Compassion & Choices website can help you connect with others in your area.

Making a Will or Advance Directive

"Death with dignity" and "medical aid in dying" are two of the most commonly accepted phrases describing the process by which a terminally ill person ingests prescribed medication to hasten death. You might also see the phrase "right to die" used in place of either of these terms. However, "right to die" is more accurately used in the context of directing one's own medical care—that is, refusing life-sustaining treatment such as a respirator or feeding tubes when permanently unconscious or close to death. In Massachusetts or any other state, you have a right to provide such directions or give any other health care instructions by completing an advance health care directive.

For information about appointing a health care agent and making known your wishes for medical care at the end of life, see the section of Nolo.com.

Learn More

To find out more about the history and current status of death with dignity laws in the United States, visit the website of the Death With Dignity National Center.