The Washington Death with Dignity Act has become such a staple of the Evergreen State’s legislation and end-of-life options that the Washington State Department of Health issued no statements on the release of the 2015 annual report in June; the media paid no attention to the non-story either. While in the states that lack such a physician-assisted death statute, the issue remains controversial, in Washington (and even more so in Oregon), Death with Dignity has become such a normal part of end-of-life planning it does not merit a media splash. Perhaps it’s also because the data are consistent with statistics reported in prior years, showing a flawless implementation of the Act.
The 2015 Washington Death with Dignity Act Report: An Overview
In 2015, 213 qualified Washingtonians received medications under the state’s Death with Dignity Act. Of the 213, 202 are known to have died: 166 died after ingesting the medication, 24 died without having ingested the medication, and for the remaining 12 people who died ingestion status is unknown.*
Prescriptions were written by 142 different physicians and dispensed by 49 different pharmacists.
A few characteristics of the 202 participants who died in 2015:
- Age ranged from 20 to 97 years old
- 72 percent had cancer, 8 percent had a neuro-degenerative disease, including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), 20 percent had other illnesses, including heart and respiratory disease
Of the 199 participants in 2015 who died and for whom a death certificate was provided to the state:
- 98 percent were white, non-Hispanic
- 47 percent were married
- 74 percent had at least some college education
Of the 197 participants in 2015 who died and for whom an After Death Report was received:
- 95 percent had private, Medicare, Medicaid, or a combination of health insurance
- 86 percent reported to their health care provider concerns about loss of autonomy; 69 percent reported concerns about loss of dignity, and 86 percent reported to their health care provider concerns about loss of the ability to participate in activities that make life enjoyable
Of the 166 participants in 2015 who died after ingesting the medication:
- 86 percent died at home at the time of death
- 81 percent were enrolled in hospice care
The new data show an increase in requests for medications. Our Executive Director Peg Sandeen ascribes the spike to the same factors that led to an increase in usage in Oregon: the interest and attention sparked in late 2014 by Brittany Maynard and the subsequent increased in legislative and media attention to the issue of physician-assisted dying.
“Her courage in sharing her story helped more and more people realize they did not have to suffer needlessly,” Peg said.
Since the Washington Death with Dignity Act was passed by voters in 2008, a total of 938 people have received prescriptions under the Act, and about 2 in 3 died using them.
* For the 11 participants not included among those known to have died, the health department received no documentation by March 25, 2016; the After Death Reporting form is due 30 days after death and the death certificate is due 60 days after death. Since the last Death with Dignity report was published on July 28, 2015, the Washington State Department of Health received additional information on participants from prior years.
As of March 25, 2016, 172 of the 176 2014 participants, 169 of the 173 participants in 2013, 121 of the 121 participants in 2012, 102 of the 103 participants in 2011, 87 of the 87 participants in 2010, and 64 of the 65 participants in 2009 had died. The status of the four remaining participants in 2014, the four remaining participants 2013, the one remaining participant in 2011, and the one remaining participant in 2009 remains unknown. These participants may have died, but no documentation of the death has been received.
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