Medical Aid-in-Dying Utilization Report

Just over 30 years ago, in November 1994, a majority of Oregon residents passed the nation’s first law giving mentally capable, terminally ill adults the end-of-life care option of medical aid in dying. The law survived legal challenges and a repeal measure referred to the ballot by the Oregon Legislature. Oregon voters chose to retain the law, which was officially implemented in 1997.

Today, more one in three people — 32.80% — live in a jurisdiction where medical aid in dying is authorized. This list includes 13 states: Oregon (1994), Washington (2008), Montana (2009), Vermont (2013), California (2015), Colorado (2016), Hawaii (2018), New Jersey (2019), Maine (2019), New Mexico (2021), Delaware (2025), Illinois (2025), New York (2026), as well as the District of Columbia (2016). Finally, Oregon, Vermont, and Montana do not have a residency requirement, meaning an adult residing in another jurisdiction and who meets the eligibility criteria, if they are able to travel, may access medical aid in dying in these jurisdictions.

We no longer have to hypothesize about what will happen if this medical practice is authorized. We have almost 30 years of data since Oregon implemented its law in 1997 and years of experience from other authorized jurisdictions, including statistical reports from nine jurisdictions. This report is a compilation of data reports from the authorized jurisdictions that issue reports as of February 12, 2026. While this report only reflects the data published as of that date, the attached data tables are updated periodically as new data is published.

Across the authorized jurisdictions that report data, 12,425 individuals to date have chosen to use medical aid in dying. While few people use the option, many gain peace of mind and comfort simply knowing it exists. Further, medical aid in dying creates a shift within our end-of-life care system to one that is resoundingly person-driven—leading to improvements in hospice care, palliative care, and pain and symptom management. We have reassuring data, strong public support, and evidence that medical aid in dying is a desirable and politically viable option.

Individuals confronting terminal illness, often in one of the most vulnerable periods of their lives, deserve the autonomy to choose how and where they spend their final moments. While some jurisdictions have removed residency requirements, no one should be compelled to leave the comfort of their home and the presence of their loved ones to access the end-of-life care they seek. Terminally ill people in jurisdictions that have not yet authorized medical aid in dying need and deserve this option now. I

f you have any questions about this report, please contact Chief Legal Advocacy Officer Bernadette Nunley at policy@compassionandchoices.org for more information.

Sincerely,
Kevin Díaz
President & CEO

Context and Methods

Currently, nine of the 14 authorized jurisdictions’ Departments of Health have issued reports regarding the use of medical aid in dying laws: Oregon,¹ Washington,² Vermont,³ California,⁴ Colorado,⁵ Hawaiʻi⁶, the District of Columbia⁷, New Jersey⁸ and Maine⁹. In all jurisdictions where medical aid in dying was authorized by legislation or ballot measure, there are statistical reporting requirements for administrative agencies, such as state health departments. However, the reported data is not standardized, and the report formats can change from year to year. In addition, the New Mexico Department of Health has not issued an official report as of this writing, so data from New Mexico is not included.^{10, 11} Montana also does not issue utilization reports, so no data from Montana is included.

Below are data points that demonstrate how medical aid in dying is being used and where there are opportunities to improve access.

• People who received a prescription and people who died after ingestion provide two pieces of information: how many people made it through the process to obtain a prescription for medical aid in dying and how many of those individuals decided to ingest the medication.
• Race, gender, and age data points indicate where disparities exist. Race and ethnicity are not reported universally or consistently across jurisdictions, nor are these categories always reflective of all the ways people identify.
• Insurance information illustrates the impacts of cost and healthcare coverage on access to medical aid in dying. Due to the Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act (ASFRA), individuals reliant on federally funded insurance programs cannot use their insurance to cover the costs associated with medical aid in dying.
• Underlying illness reports the most common diseases and diagnoses for individuals who request medical aid in dying.

This report aggregates utilization data published on or before February 12, 2026, which includes data from calendar year 2024. Although differences exist in how each jurisdiction collects and reports data about medical aid in dying, Compassion & Choices records all reported data from each jurisdiction in the aggregate to provide a picture of access to medical aid in dying in the United States. Key findings are below.

Medical Aid-in-Dying Jurisdiction Usage Reports

Based on reported data, the following is known:

• Over the past nearly three decades, across all jurisdictions, more than 20,000 eligible individuals have received prescriptions for medical aid in dying, with 12,425 going on to ingest them.
• While data is not collected on patients who only discuss medical aid in dying with their healthcare providers but do not begin the statutory process, nor on patients who begin the process but do not receive a prescription, these unreported events represent an important group. They are individuals who have engaged in meaningful conversations with their providers to better understand all of their end-of-life care options and to make informed decisions that reflect their values, priorities, and desire for a peaceful death.
• Less than 1% of the adults who die in each jurisdiction choose medical aid in dying each year¹²
• Only 61% (just under two-thirds) of people with prescriptions ingest the medication and die. Up to 39% of people who go through the process and obtain the prescription may never take it. This group consists of people who die without using the medication, whether from illness, another cause of death, or an unreported reason. In any case, we hear from terminally ill adults that they derive peace of mind simply from knowing they have the option if their suffering becomes too great.
• The majority of terminally ill adults who utilize medical aid in dying (89%) are enrolled in hospice or palliative care services at the time of their deaths.
• There is nearly equal utilization of medical aid in dying among men and women. There is no data yet on the utilization of medical aid in dying by nonbinary or gender non-conforming people. However, New Jersey began including a category for nonbinary people with its 2023 report.
• The rate at which Asian, Black, Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Indigenous American, Alaskan Native, Latino/a/x, Hispanic, and multi-race people access medical aid in dying is consistently lower than white populations across all years and jurisdictions.¹³
• Year after year, reports indicate that the utilization of medical aid in dying is increasing among people of color. Since 2022, many jurisdictions have reported increases in the percentage of people of color utilizing medical aid in dying.
• Terminal cancer accounts for the vast majority of qualifying diagnoses (67.7%), with neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS or Huntington’s disease following as the second-leading diagnosis (11.2%). In recent years, many jurisdictions have seen growing numbers of patients with cardiovascular diseases seeking medical aid in dying.
• Over 79% of people who use medical aid in dying are able to die at home. According to various studies, that is the preference of most Americans.¹⁴
• Differences in data collection and reporting among jurisdictions do not allow for thorough comparisons of the use of medical aid in dying across the United States.
• Increased access to medical aid in dying is observed in jurisdictions that have improved their laws by removing residency requirements, adjusting waiting periods and waivers, and allowing advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs, including nurse practitioners) and other qualified healthcare providers to participate. This change is observed across years of increased access to medical aid in dying in California, Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington, beginning in 2018 with the amendment to Oregon’s law.

To see the complete data charts, click the button on the top right to download this report.