In the last five years, four states have strengthened their laws against assisted suicide. These states are: Arizona, Idaho, Georgia and Louisiana.
In the last 30 days, courts in New Mexico and California have rejected assisted suicide. The New Mexico Court of Appeals struck down a lower court ruling that had allowed physician-assisted suicide. A California trial court declined to legalize physician-assisted suicide, holding that California's law prohibiting physician-assisted suicide is constitution.
This year, there have been 25 plus proposals to legalize physician-assisted suicide in the United States, not one of which has passed.[1]
There are just three states were physician-assisted suicide is legal: Oregon; Washington; and Vermont. In a fourth state, Montana, case law gives doctors who assist a suicide a defense to a homicide charge; the doctor can still be charged. In both Montana and Vermont, there are active movements to eliminate assisted suicide.[2]
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[1] Death with Dignity National Center
[2] In Montana, SB 202, which would have legalized physician-assisted suicide was defeated; HB 477, which would have reversed the court decision giving doctors a defense to a homicide charge, passed the House. See http://www.montanansagainstassistedsuicide.org/2015/05/sb-202-dead.html and http://www.montanansagainstassistedsuicide.org/2015/03/hb-477-passes-house.html See also www.truedignityvt.org
