State Senator Wants To Start Conversation On Assisted Death

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — A state senator says it's time for a conversation about physician-assisted death in Minnesota.

Sen. Chris Eaton doesn't plan to push for a law allowing terminally ill patients to end their lives this year, though she has introduced a bill. The Brooklyn Center Democrat wants public input on the idea in time for the next legislative session.

A national nonprofit advocating for so-called "right to die" laws says bills to allow the practice have been introduced in more than 15 states. It's currently legal in Oregon, New Mexico and three other states.

Eaton's bill would require two doctors to sign off on a terminal patient's state of mind before prescribing medication that would end the patient's life. The patient would have the final say over whether to use the medication.