When a doctor tells you that you have six months to live, you should have a say in how those final months end. That's the simple idea behind House Bills 5825-5828 — Michigan's Death with Dignity Act — and it's why we're asking the Michigan House Committee on Government Operations to move this bill forward now.

The legislation would allow a terminally ill adult with a prognosis of six months or less to request medication to end their life on their own terms. The process is careful and deliberate by design: two separate oral requests at least 15 days apart, a written request witnessed by two or more people, and a psychiatric evaluation to ensure the patient is acting freely and without impairment. Coercing someone into making this request would carry a 20-year felony. These are not loopholes — they are guardrails.

For too long, Michiganders facing terminal diagnoses have been denied an option that residents of nine other states, including California, Colorado, and Vermont, have had for years. Similar bills were introduced in 2017 and again in 2023. Both times, they stalled in committee and never received a floor vote.

"It's a way to give individuals the ability to take control over their end-of-life process while also having their family support and doctor's suggestion, and oversight of the process," said state Rep. Kimberly Edwards, D-Eastpointe, who introduced the current legislation in April.

This is not a partisan issue. In 2018, 72% of Americans told Gallup they support giving terminally ill patients this option. Compassion for people at the end of their lives doesn't belong to one party. We're asking Michigan lawmakers on both sides of the aisle — and especially the members of the House Committee on Government Operations — to let this bill move forward. Give it a vote. Let Michigan patients have the dignity they deserve.