Terminally ill patients take a new swing at end-of-life options

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Terminally ill patients have fought for years to get a Minnesota law allowing their doctors to help them die in peace.

Sisphyus' bill

Options with opponents:

They’ve always failed, but they’re trying to climb that hill again this year. Opponents say it could have dangerous consequences because it pressures poor patients into cutting off expensive care.

But several patients say the longer the law stays the same, the more people will die without dignity.

Tom Albin is a runner and an adult league hockey player. He’s also an ALS patient.

"It will eventually trap me in a body that can't move, but I will be fully aware of it the whole time, and there's no escape," he said.

Albin is the face of the 2025 end of life options bill authored by Rep. Mike Freiberg.

A slow campaign?

Try, try again:

The Golden Valley Democrat says it’s the ninth time he’s tried to pass the bill and every year, patients stand next to him to promote it.

"I want this bill passed," Nancy Uden told FOX 9 in 2024. "I don't want to die a terrible death."

READ MORE: Momentum builds for End-of-Life Options Act in Minnesota

"I don’t want to be at the mercy of strangers who will decide when and how I die," Judith Normandin told FOX 9 in 2023.

Uden and Normandin died without seeing the bill pass, partly because of the influence of the Alliance for Ethical Healthcare.

"Assisted suicide is dangerous, risky and unnecessary," said Nancy Utoft, president of the group, during testimony against the 2024 bill.

Countering concerns

Death inequities?:

Opponents say people will choose to die when better healthcare could keep them alive, so allowing end-of-life options will lead poor people to choose death while rich people choose care.

The bill tries to address those concerns. The person has to be an adult with an illness that’ll kill them within six months. Two doctors have to confirm the diagnosis and the patient’s mental capacity, and they have to be able to administer the medication themselves.

What's next?

Timeline:

Albin says he still enjoys his life, and he’s working to extend it, but he hopes he’ll be the last patient standing next to Freiberg.

"I believe that as my disease progresses, I should have the right to have a say in how my life ends," he said.

Freiberg acknowledged to FOX 9 he feels a bit like Sisyphus, pushing a bill to the top of the hill every year only to never finish and always having to start over.

Chances are good he’ll be working on it again next year.