Literature Review

NY’s MAiD law: updates that medical providers and facilities should know JD Supra; by Rivkin Radler, LLD - Attorneys at Law; 7/31/26As discussed in our prior publication, Medical Aid in Dying Is Now Legal in NY, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed New York’s Medical Aid in Dying Act (MAID) on February 6, 2026. Since then, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) has issued a form (DOH-5847) for patients to request MAID, frequently asked questions (FAQs), educational materials, guidance, and proposed reporting regulations. Together, these materials provide important directions for providers and facilities as they prepare for the law’s August 5, 2026, effective date.

Medical Aid in Dying in New York: A changing medical and legal landscape for terminally ill New Yorkers and healthcare professionals New York State Bar Association; by Edward McArdle, Mary Beth Quaranta Morrissey, Adrienne Borschuk and Epiphany G. Ramirez; 7/29/26 Medical aid in dying will soon become a legally permitted medical option for terminally ill patients in New York [on Aug 5]. The chapter amendments, which Gov. Hochul required before signing the bill, introduced several additional patient protections and clarifications to address concerns raised during the legislative process. These amendments include the requirements that all oral requests for the bill be recorded by audio or video device and permanently stored in the patient’s medical record; a mandatory mental health evaluation by a qualified professional to confirm decisional capacity; a five-day waiting period between the writing and filling of the prescription (with a narrow exception if the attending physician determines the patient may die before the period expires); a strict residency requirement limited to New York residents only; an in-person initial physician consultation unless such would cause extraordinary hardship to the patient; and strengthened opt-out rights for individual clinicians and healthcare facilities – including home hospice programs – that hold religious, moral, or ethical objections to participating in MAiD.

Public Policy Agenda & Toolkit National Coalition for Hospice and Palliative Care; Press Release; 5/4/26 The National Coalition for Hospice and Palliative Care’s Public Policy Agenda outlines a unified, consensus-driven set of priorities to strengthen palliative care and hospice for patients, families, and caregivers across the lifespan. Developed through collaboration among national member organizations, the agenda provides a coordinated framework to guide policy and advocacy efforts at both the national and state levels. It reflects shared priorities to improve access, advance quality and equity, support the workforce, and promote sustainable, value-based care.

US lawmakers urge stricter monitoring of medically assisted suicide in hospices The Guardian | US healthcare; by Coral Murphy Marcos; 7/9/26 Lawmakers urged the health and human services (HHS) secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, on Thursday to establish strict hospice reporting rules to prevent discrimination and coercion in medically assisted suicide. The bipartisan group of members of Congress warned that older adults, people with disabilities, or those with disaffected caregivers face a particular risk of being pressured to end their lives. “Every person has inherent worth and dignity, including those facing their final days,” said the Republican senator James Lankford in a statement. ... Lankford, as well as the Democratic senator Tim Kaine, Republican representative Greg Murphy and Jose Luis Correa, a Democratic representative, signed a joint letter asking HHS and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to monitor the practice.

Senators Hassan, Scott introduce bipartisan bill to establish www.ReportScams.Gov, first central portal for Americans to report scams and get help Maggie Hassan, US Senator for New Hampshire, Washington, DC; Press Release; 6/15/26 U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Rick Scott (R-FL) introduced bipartisan legislation to establish the first central portal for Americans to report scams and get the help they need from law enforcement and federal agencies. The ReportScams.gov Act will establish a comprehensive Federal Scams Action Plan and create a website – www.ReportScams.gov – to serve as a central location for federal scams reporting, information, and assistance. “Today, with no central hub to combat scams, Americans are forced to navigate a maze of agencies and websites when they want to report a scam and get help. ...” said Senator Hassan. “This bipartisan bill will establish a comprehensive, unified plan to thwart scammers and provide consumers with one clear user-friendly portal where they can report scams and alert law enforcement.”

A smarter approach to fraud means better care at home The Hill | Opinion; by Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-Texas) and Jennifer Sheets; 6/23/26 .. Home health and hospice providers meet people where they are — both physically and through wraparound support — caring for them in their homes at the end of life or during critical healing and recovery periods when trust is paramount. ... Fraudulent operators do not simply steal taxpayer dollars; they harm real people, exploit vulnerable individuals, undermine legitimate providers, and erode confidence in critical healthcare services that families depend on every day. Combatting fraud, waste and abuse in healthcare must remain a national priority. That is why I am glad to partner with the National Alliance for Care at Home on the Protecting Seniors and Stopping Fraudsters Act, designed to strengthen program integrity in home health and hospice while protecting access to care for patients who depend on these services, and reducing burden for legitimate providers.

GAO uses home health as benchmark to question Medicare hospice payments Home Health News; by Morgan Gonzales with Jim Parker; 6/9/26 ... GAO said Medicare could have saved about $7.6 billion if hospice routine home care from 2022 through 2024 had been reimbursed using adjusted home health per-visit rates rather than hospice’s current per-day payment system, according to a GAO report released Tuesday [6/9]. ... While The Alliance questioned the GAO’s comparison of hospice to home health, Mollie Gurian, vice president of policy and government affairs for LeadingAge, said that the comparison could be a helpful tool.

Pennsylvania General Assembly House Bill 2254 - Medical Marijuana ActPennsylvania General Assembly | House Committee Vote Summary 2025-2026 Regular SEssion; 6/1/26 Requires healthcare facilities to permit terminally ill patients to use medical marijuana. 

New Iowa law allows ‘adult close friend’ to make end-of-life medical decisions KCRG-9 ABC, Iowa City, IA; by Lacey Reeves; 5/28/26 Starting in July, a close adult friend can make end-of-life medical decisions for someone who is unable to make them themselves under a new Iowa state law. When a patient can’t make medical decisions for themselves, a hierarchy establishes who can make the decisions for them. Typically a spouse, adult child or adult sibling of the patient can make those decisions. “Not everybody has a family member who is available, willing, capable to make decisions for them,” said Sara Krieger, CEO of Iowa City Hospice. Iowa City Hospice said it has been working for years to add “close adult friend” to that list through legislation.

8 years later, Ohio takes another look at ‘medical aid in dying.’ Will this time be different? Cleveland.com, Columbus, OH; by Mary Frances McGown; 4/26/26 Eight years after similar legislation stalled at the Statehouse, Ohio lawmakers are again weighing whether terminally ill residents should be able to determine the timing of their death. Rep. Eric Synenberg this week introduced legislation to legalize “medical aid in dying” in Ohio, allowing mentally competent adults with a terminal diagnosis and six months or less to live to hasten their deaths by taking a lethal dose of medication prescribed by a physician. ... Recent public polling has shown that most Americans are open to medical aid in dying, and advocates say that public education on the subject has improved since the last legislative battle. Yet opposition to such legislation is also strong, particularly among the religious.

Closing the palliative care workforce gap through state lawmaking: a survey of legislation 2010-2023 Journal of Pain and Symptom Management; by Eugene Rusyn, JD and Stacie Sinclair, MPP; 4/6/26Results: From 2010-2023, we identified 723 bills and laws pertaining to palliative care. Of those, fourteen related in whole or in part to workforce (representing 2% of the total) with five becoming law—representing a pass rate of 36%. Fifty-five legislative entries pertained to clinical skill-building (comprising 7.6% of bills or laws from 2010-2023), with seventeen becoming law—representing a pass rate of 31%. Taken together, these efforts represented a minority (9.5%) of state legislative action during the study period.

Arizona lawmakers reject bill to legalize assisted suicide Live Action; by Angeline Tan; 4/13/26 Arizona lawmakers have dismissed a rejuvenated attempt to legalize assisted suicide, dealing a setback to its proponents in the state. House Bill 2569 — also referred to as the Thomas M. Dow Act — did not move forward in the Arizona Legislature this session, and it was not scheduled for a hearing in a House committee. ... In Arizona, concerns about coercion and inadequate oversight contributed to the bill’s defeat. Lawmakers raised questions about how eligibility criteria would be enforced and whether vulnerable individuals could be influenced by family members, financial considerations, or systemic health care inequalities. For over 20 years, Arizona legislators have considered similar measures. 

Finding rare agreement on fixing the health care affordability crisisPenn LDI - Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics; by Hoag Levins; 4/7/26 In a rare display of bipartisan alignment, former Obama administration advisor Ezekiel Emanuel and Trump policy architect Brian Blase declared that the U.S. health care system is being choked by “perverse incentives” and monopolistic practices. ...