California Joins States That Would Evict Veterans Who Seek Aid-In-Dying Option

Advocates of medical aid-in-dying and residents of the Veterans Home of California-Yountville are opposing a regulation passed in 2017 by the California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) that would evict anyone living in veterans' communities if they plan to use the law, reports Kaiser Health News . CalVet's June Iljana says the agency adopted the rule to avoid breaking a federal law banning the use of government resources for physician-assisted death. To do so would imperil nearly $68 million in federal funds that helps run such communities. Iljana notes none of the 2,400 residents of California's veterans' communities has so far formally requested medical aid-in-dying. "We would respectfully and compassionately assist them in transferring to a hospice, family home, or other location," she says. "We will readmit them immediately if they change their mind." Oregon, Colorado, and Vermont also bar the use of lethal medications in state-run veterans' communities. Only Washington state has a policy that permits veterans to remain in government-run residences if they intend to ingest lethal medications. At least one veteran has died in a state-run community using that law, says Heidi Audette with Washington state's Department of Veterans Affairs. "Nothing exists in the federal statute's language that would prohibit a resident from receiving aid-in-dying services at state homes, so long as they are not provided using federal funds or employees," contends End of Life Liberty Project Executive Director Kathryn Tucker.