DES MOINES, Iowa-- Iowa lawmakers introduced a right-to-die bill on Tuesday, February 11.
They say the bill would allow terminally ill Iowans with six months or less to live to have the right to ask for help ending their life.
Patients could ask doctors for medication that would allow them to die peacefully in their sleep.
Some doctors say assisted suicide goes against the code of medical ethics while others support a patient's right to choose.
Nine states and the district of Columbia have already passed similar laws.
It would allow terminally ill Iowans with six months or less to live to have the right to die. Patients could ask doctors for medication that would allow them to die peacefully in their sleep.
The legislation is modeled after Oregon's "Death with Dignity Act," which has been in use for 20 years.
"I believe that no one else should get to decide for a terminally ill person how much pain they must endure. I urge Iowa lawmakers to touch their hearts and to make medical aid in dying available to its terminally ill residents so that Iowans are not forced to suffer needlessly," said cancer survivor Luanna Rashenberger on Tuesday.
A number of professional medical associations are split on the issue. Some claim physician-assisted suicide goes against the code of medical ethics, while others support a patient's right to choose.