In California, there is now a new law that allows doctors to prescribe lethal doses of medication to terminally-ill or dying patients who request for such medication to relieve their suffering.
But a group representing county coroners said the law signed by Gov. Jerry Brown on Monday leaves so many questions that have to be addressed, including how to classify physician-assisted death on death certificates.
"There are a lot of details to be worked out," said Rocky Shaw, a supervising investigator for San Bernardino County and president of the California State Coroners Association.
"One is what to list on death certificates as the immediate cause of death. In the past, someone taking a lethal dose of drugs would be ruled a suicide. But the new law says that death resulting from the self-administration of an aid-in-dying drug is not suicide... which leaves a question about how to classify such a death," Shaw said, according to LA Times.
Also unclear, he said is "what to do if a guy takes life-ending drugs and then goes to sit in a park to die, and we find him there.''
Coroners, he said, could be unable to determine whether a death was sanctioned by law, which could complicate the decision on whether to conduct an autopsy.
The law known as ABX2-15 allows dying patients to end their lives through lethal doses of medication as long as medication is self-administered, the patient is mentally competent, and two physicians can confirm the prognosis that the patient has six months or less to live, according to CaliforniaHealthline.org.
CaliforniaHealthline said the amendments had already been incorporated in the bill before it was passed, including one that requires patients to reaffirm their consent within 48 hours prior to taking the lethal dose of medication.
The bill's authors also reportedly added an amendment "to sunset the law after a decade, making it effective only until Jan. 1, 2026'' although the state Legislature could vote to extend it, CaliforniaHealthline said.
The coroners' group said it will seek guidance on classifying such deaths from the state Department of Public Health, which has been tasked with collecting documentation on physician-assisted death.
The coroners also noted that issues about insurance payouts to beneficiaries are a concern since companies are likely to deny benefit payments in cases of suicide, said the LA Times.
Meanwhile, the group Seniors Against Suicide has reportedly filed papers with the state Office of the Attorney General (OAG) for a November 2016 ballot referendum seeking to overturn the new law.
CaliforniaHealthline said once the OAG issues a title and summary, the group will have until Jan. 3 to collect 365,880 voters' signatures to qualify the referendum for the ballot.
