Dignity in death: More than 200 terminally ill Vermonters exercised right to assisted suicide in first decade since legalization

Since the state legalized assisted suicide in 2013, more than 200 terminally ill people in Vermont have chosen to use life-threatening drugs in the past decade.

A new report Research from the Vermont Department of Health found that 203 patients chose to “die with dignity” between May 2013 and June 2023.

In May 2013, the Vermont General Assembly passed Act 39, which allows capable, terminally ill adult patients to request and obtain a prescription for life-ending medications to hasten their death.

Patient and physician participation is completely voluntary.

In May 2023, the law was expanded to also allow terminally ill patients from out of state to apply for approval to access the drugs.

According to the report, 153 Vermonters who chose to voluntarily die from cancer, while 26 people were plagued by neurodegenerative diseases.

This statistic does not include out-of-state patients who chose assisted suicide after the state expanded the law.

The state's original aid-in-dying law required patients with a prognosis of six months or less to live to make two in-person visits to a doctor.

They then had to visit another consultant doctor and submit a written request. The patient had to wait 48 hours before receiving a prescription, if approved.

But in 2022, the process was simplified. Since then, patients have been allowed to speak to prescribers via telemedicine and do not have to wait 48 hours for a prescription.

One of the 203 people who chose to die with dignity was a former Vermont lawmaker and state House majority leader who had supported changes to Act 39 and made it easier for terminally ill people to get prescriptions.

Williem Jewett, 58, died at his home in Ripton, Vermont, on January 12, 2022, surrounded by his family, according to his wife Ellen McKay.

The late lawmaker had been diagnosed with mucosal melanoma, a rare form of cancer that develops in the body's mucous membranes.

Jewett, a lawyer and cyclist, served in the Vermont House from 2003 to 2016, where he was known for his energy, humor and intelligence — and for biking more than 50 miles to the Statehouse for the annual Earth Day ride.

The Democrat became assistant majority leader in 2011 and later majority leader.

“He lived like there wasn't a moment to lose,” chairman Shap Smith said at the time. “In the Legislature he was great to work with, very smart and 'definitely had a feisty side.'

When the House gave the bill final approval in 2013 after a day of debate in which members told stories of the deaths of their own loved ones, Jewett, then majority leader, said, “I've listened to all these stories, very personal stories, and I respect them all .'

By law, at the end of our lives, we must all remain true to our signposts, he said.

Smith said Jewett played a key role in helping organize a strategy for the bill, getting the House votes and then working with leadership to get support from senators.

Like others, “his support was critical,” said Betsy Walkerman, president of Patient Choices Vermont, a nonprofit organization. “He's very proud of this bill.”

Walkerman spoke to him by phone on January 7, five days before he died.

He “just wanted to add his voice, which is incredibly powerful because he has a dual role as a legislator and as a patient, as someone at the end of life making choices,” she said.

Jewett was initially diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2008 after noticing a lump under his collarbone.

“If I have a problem now on an energy level, I think it's too much,” Jewett told the Independent in 2008. “Maybe (with chemotherapy) I have the energy of just one person.”

He was later diagnosed with mucosal melanoma. Months before his death, he married Ellen McKay in June after meeting her four years earlier.

During his final months, he rode 100 miles with his cycling team, brother and daughters, raising more than $20,000 for cancer research through the Prouty fundraiser.

He continued to work even after beginning the application process for medical assistance in dying last month.

Before his death, he continued to use his political platform to advocate for changes to Law 39 on assisted suicide.

He ended his life on January 12 with his family close by as they shared his final moments.

“Forza,” he said before giving the prescription to his wife, according to the VT Digger.

“And he smiled and said 'forza,'” she said. 'That's what they shout at Italian cycling races. It means go, go, go get 'em, power. Forza.'