The good people of Maine have a right to know that LD 613, An Act to Amend the Maine Death with Dignity Act to Ensure Access by Qualified Patients, ultimately passed with a Senate amendment and was signed by Gov. Mills on June 20.

The Portland Press Herald reported on the initial Senate vote of June 9, leaving some folks with the idea the bill had failed to pass.

This is where Maine’s political process can get interesting. LD 613 passed between House and Senate like a ping-pong ball, ultimately passing after an approved Senate version (20-15) modified the bill to allow up to 10 days of the 17-day waiting period to be waived based on the clinical opinion of the physician.

The Senate version met with even stronger approval in the House (79-62), and LD 613 quickly bounced back to the Senate for final approval (18-15, 2 excused). By Monday, June 16, the bill was on its way to the governor for signature. So, LD 613 is passed as amended, and the waiting period waiver goes into effect in September of this year, 90 days post-close-of-session.

A big thanks to Rep. Michele Meyer, D-Eliot, her supportive colleagues in the House and Senate, and to Gov. Janet Mills. Maine Death with Dignity is a donor-funded 501(c)(3) nonprofit serving the people of Maine. For more information, see mainedeathwithdignity.org.

Rev. Valerie Lovelace
Executive director, Maine Death with Dignity
Westport Island