California euthanasia bill awaits governor's decision

California legislators approved a bill last week that legalizes physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients.

The End of Life Option Act passed Friday by a 23-14 vote in the Senate after passing the General Assembly with a 44-35 vote on Sept. 9. The bill came up during a special session intended to address the state’s MediCal program.

This is the second time lawmakers introduced right-to-die legislation in California this year. The original bill failed when its authors decided not to introduce it in the Assembly despite its passage in the Senate. The revised legislation requires patients be able to take a suicide pill on their own with the approval of two doctors. It also requires several written requests for the medication and the presence of two witnesses.

Compassion & Choices, the organization responsible for publicizing the death of Brittany Maynard last year, hailed the bill’s passage as a victory for the “death with dignity” movement. The law’s approval comes about 10 months after Maynard committed suicide following a brain cancer diagnosis. Not long before her death, Maynard moved from California to Oregon so she could legally end her own life.

“Passing this historic bill is a monumental victory for terminally ill Californians … who just want a way to end horrific suffering in their final days,” said Compassion and Choices president Barbara Coombs Lee.

But pro-life advocates see the bill as a threat to vulnerable patients suffering from treatable conditions, like clinical depression.

“Friday’s vote shows a blatant disregard for the lives of California’s medically vulnerable citizens and sends a message to these citizens that their lives are less worthy to be lived,” said National Right to Life president Carol Tobias. “We urge all Californians concerned about the right of the medically vulnerable to contact Gov. [Jerry] Brown and tell him to stop doctor-prescribed suicide.”

Brown has not indicated whether he will sign the bill. If he does, California would join Oregon, Washington, Vermont, and Montana in legalizing physician-assisted suicide.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.