2024 Articles

Social Work and the New York State Medical Aid in Dying Act

Smith, Stephanie

Medical Aid in Dying (MAiD) is garnering increasing attention throughout the world. Since 1998, 14 states and Washington D.C. have MAiD laws in the United States. For the eighth time in as many years, the NewYork State legislature has introduced MAiD legislation, and the Medical Aid in Dying Act is currently in committee in both the Assembly and the Senate. Although this legislation has failed in New York State in the past, it is increasingly supported by New York voters (Granquist, 2024). The MAiD debates in New York state, along with data from U.S. jurisdictions with MAiD laws, highlight important considerations about end-of-life choices and how they intersect with social work values. Social workers can gain valuable insight into supporting people at the end of life, engage in self-reflection on their own beliefs and biases related to end- of-life choices, encourage self-reflection of medical professionals, and advocate for equity in healthcare within medical institutions and through social welfare policy (Schroepfer et al., 2022). This discourse can benefit patients interacting with the health care system regardless of MAiD’s outcome in New York State.