On Thursday, a terminally ill Connecticut woman in Vermont died the way she had hoped, in an event her husband described as “comfortable and peaceful.”
Linda Bluestein, a lifelong activist from Bridgeport, had terminal cancer, but she didn't want to wait for the lingering illness to take her life. Instead, she spent years pushing for the expansion of a Vermont law that gives people with terminal illnesses the option to end their lives with lethal drugs.
On Thursday, Bluestein took his own life by taking prescribed medication, surrounded by his family.
Her husband, Paul, wrote in an email shared with The Associated Press that her last words were “I'm so happy that I don't have to go through this anymore.”
Assisted death may soon become a reality for people suffering from mental illness in Canada
FILE – Linda Bluestein, who pushed for the expansion of a Vermont law that allows terminally ill patients to end their lives by administering lethal drugs, died Thursday in Vermont after taking prescribed medication. (Linda Bluestein, via AP)
Bluestein told The Associated Press last year that her decision helped her overcome her terminal illness. She also said she would rather die surrounded by her husband, children, grandchildren, and friends than wait in her hospital bed, not knowing when cancer might strike and where she could be alone. said.
“I want to live the same way I've always lived, and I want my death to be the same as the life I've always wanted. Cancer has taken so much of me and I don't want it anymore.'' I wanted to have some independence when I couldn't.'' Be patient. That’s my choice,” Bluestein said.
Biden administration proposes expanding access to free birth control under Obamacare
In the same interview last year, Bluestein said her mother died in the hospital after a long fight.
“I wanted to die with meaning, but I wanted to die in a way that didn't take forever,” she explained.
In this image taken from video, Linda Bluestein smiles during an interview in the living room of her home in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on February 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrik Ngowi)
Vermont's law, in effect since 2013, allows doctors to prescribe lethal drugs to patients with incurable diseases who are expected to die within six months.
Mr. Bluestein had pushed for similar legislation to be passed in Connecticut and New York, but that did not happen.
Her death came after Compassion & Choice filed a lawsuit against the state of Vermont in 2022 on behalf of Bluestein and Diana Barnard, a doctor from Middlebury.
The lawsuit changed the residency requirements in Vermont's so-called Patient Choice and End-of-Life Care Act, alleging that the requirements violated the U.S. Constitution. The state settled the case in March 2023, allowing Mr. Bluestein, who is not a Vermont resident, to use the law to die in Vermont.
Vermont Republican governor approves assisted suicide for non-residents
“Linda has been an advocate from beginning to end, and she wanted access to this legislation and she got it. But coming to Vermont requires travel and scheduling adjustments, so she And everyone has the right to have access close to home.'' That's not what we want people to do,'' Barnard said.
Vermont law allows doctors to prescribe lethal drugs to terminally ill patients who are expected to die within six months. (St. Petersburg)
“But more than a silver lining is the beauty and peace that came from Linda having a say in what happened at the end of her life,” the doctor added.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Medically assisted suicide is controversial, as critics express moral objections to it and argue that vulnerable patients can be coerced.
But supporters say the law has strict safeguards. These include making multiple requests to a doctor over a period of time and producing non-involved witnesses.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
