The Colorado Legislature will convene on Jan. 13, and not long after, the End of Life Options Act will be introduced. It would allow a person, 18 or older who is in the final stages of terminal illness as confirmed by two doctors, to request a prescription for aid-in-dying medicine and take the medicine by themselves when they decide they want to die. It contains provisions to protect the terminally ill from being coerced and can only be used voluntarily.

Each year in Colorado, a significant number of people who are terminally ill suffer unnecessarily for long periods of time and experience prolonged deaths. In order to hasten their death, some stop eating or resort to even more harsh methods. Someday, we may find ourselves in a similar situation. We can make dying more humane and less difficult for the terminally ill. We know how, we just need a law that allows it.

My wife, who was terminally ill, pleaded with the hospice nurse the night before she died to help her die. The nurse got down on her knees, looked into my wife’s eyes, as she lay in bed, and replied, “I want to help you but I can’t, it’s not legal.”

My wife died the next morning, after a very difficult night. It didn’t have to be that way. This act will give the terminally ill more control over how and when they die, and as a result, greater peace of mind and less suffering.

Please contact our local legislators and let them know that we want them to support the End of Life Options Act. They really do want to hear from us – it’s crucial to reach out. Please take a few minutes to call or email our legislators and ask them to support the End of Life of Options Act. The contact information for our legislators is the following: Sen. Ellen Roberts: (303) 866-4884, ellen.roberts.senate@state.co.us; Rep. J. Paul Brown: (303) 866-2914, jpaul.brown.house@state.co.us

Whitey Powers

Durango