Medical Aid in Dying

In November 2016, Colorado voters passed the Colorado End-of-Life Options Act, which allows qualifying terminally ill adults to obtain a lethal dose of medication to voluntarily end their lives. Under the Act, healthcare providers, including SCL Health, are not required to assist qualified patients in ending their lives, and providers are required to establish policies supporting their positions.

SCL Health is committed to providing the best possible care for patients approaching the end-of-life, or actively dying, which includes curative and comfort care. We provide palliative and hospice care, and strive to mitigate suffering and address the fear of pain and loss of control that patients may experience.

We believe we can provide compassionate care and comfort to our patients so they can live with dignity until the time of natural death, and we have therefore opted out of participation.

SCL Health caregivers will continue to provide other requested end-of-life and palliative care services to patients and families, and they may discuss the range of available treatment options to ensure patients are making informed decisions with respect to their care.

Any of our patients wishing to request medical aid-in-dying medication will be offered an opportunity to transfer to another facility of the patient’s choice.