Disability group, coroners press governor ahead of assisted suicide
decision
[December 05, 2025]
By Catrina Barker | The Center Square contributor
(The Center Square) – A Chicago-based disability-rights organization is
seeking a meeting with Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office as Illinois prepares
for possible action on legislation that would legalize
physician-assisted suicide in the state.
Senate Bill 1950, which began as a bill about sanitary food preparation,
passed as the End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act in the
early morning hours of Halloween.
“Very, very simply, this allows a person … age 18 or older who receives
a diagnosis of six months or less to live and is mentally competent to
make an informed decision to have the option of self-administering a
prescription to end their suffering,” said bill sponsor state Sen. Linda
Holmes, D-Aurora, during floor debate.
SB 1950 was sent to the governor’s desk Nov. 25. Wednesday, Pritzker was
asked about the measure.
“It's a hard issue, and I don't want anybody to think that making up
your mind about this is very easy,” Pritzker said. “It's not. I think
there's a lot to consider, but most of all, it's about compassion. And
again, there's evidence and information on both sides that leads me to
think seriously about what direction to go.”
Sebastian Nalls, a policy analyst at Access Living, said the group has
formally requested a meeting but has not yet received a response.
“We’ve requested a meeting with the governor’s team to go over the
bill,” Nalls said. “At this point in time, we don’t have a timeline on
it. We hope that it’s sooner rather than later.”
Nalls referenced other states’ reporting systems, arguing that they do
not provide a clear mechanism to track possible abuse.
“Proponents will say there have been no instances of abuse or coercion,”
Nalls said. “But there is no mechanism dedicated to reporting abuse, so
there’s no way to actually catalog it. There's a reason why the National
Council on Disability has urged states not to pass legislation like
this."
The legislation has also raised concerns from outside the disability
community. Fifty county coroners recently issued a public letter warning
the proposal would remove “critical safeguards” and prevent independent
coroner investigations of deaths involving the medication.
Nalls said those warnings align closely with Access Living’s own
concerns about a lack of oversight.
“That’s just another layer of accountability that doesn’t exist in this
legislation,” he said. “When coroners say this bill would allow deaths
to bypass independent investigation, it reflects the broader problem
we’ve identified: there are significant oversight challenges, and very
few ways to investigate potential abuse or coercion.”
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Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker speaks at an Advocate Health Care event
at District 21 Health Center in Illinois. Photo: BlueRoomStream /
Screenshot
Asked whether amendments could bring Access Living closer to
supporting the bill, Nalls was unequivocal: “No.”
Peoria County Coroner Jamie Harwood said coroners across the state
have “grave concerns” about the bill, including how deaths would be
recorded and the lack of third-party oversight.
“Our statutory obligation is to determine the cause of death for all
deaths within our jurisdiction,” Harwood said. “But under this bill,
once a doctor prescribes the medication and the person takes it at
home, the coroner’s office is completely taken out of the picture.”
Harwood said the legislation requires the cause of death to be
listed as the patient’s underlying terminal illness, not the
ingestion of life-ending medication.
“It won’t be listed as an intoxication death, and it won’t be listed
as a suicide,” he said. “It will be listed as a natural cause. That
takes the truth out of the cause of death.”
The concern, Harwood said, is not about whether individuals should
be allowed to choose assisted death.
“Overwhelmingly, none of us are opposed to choice,” he said. “Our
concern isn’t whether we’re pro or against suicide. Our concern is
that there’s no third-party oversight over the death, and there
would never be based on the way the law is written.”
Harwood said he has raised the issue with state Rep. Jehan
Gordon-Booth, D-Peoria, whom he described as supportive of his work
and aware of his concerns.
“I’m surprised I haven’t heard anything,” he said. “I'm hoping
Representative Gordon-Booth can get this in front of the governor.
As Speaker Pro Tempore, she’s in a position to reach him directly.”
Pritzker has until Jan. 25 to sign or veto the measure.
Greg Bishop contributed to this report.
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