Peoria County Coroner Raises Concern Over Medical Aid in Dying Bill

PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — A potential law, giving terminally ill patients the option to end their lives through the use of medication, needs more safeguards according to the Peoria County Coroner.

Jamie Harwood said he believes that such a decision needs more oversight than is currently in the law. He said when it comes to hospice care, he investigates every single death. However, that isn’t the case if someone was to choose a medically assisted death.

“The unfortunate thing is the way this bill is written, we wouldn’t even be notified or called into that at all, which is the unfortunate thing,” he said.

The proposal, which passed out of the General Assembly earlier this month, is now on the desk of Gov. JB Pritzker, waiting his signature to make it a law. He has not indicated publicly whether he will sign the measure or not.

Tessa Mahoney, the executive director of the Central Illinois Agency of Aging, said she understands both sides, but it can be difficult to determine if someone truly has only six months or less to live.

“So if somebody goes past six months what happens then… what does the process look like now?” she said.