A bill that would remove patient consent as a defense in a homicide charge in cases of physician-assisted death passed a second reading in the Montana Senate, NBC affiliate KTVH reported Feb. 21.
If the bill becomes law, physicians in the state could face criminal charges for assisting in a patient's death, even if the patient consents to it.
Proponents of the bill said they are working to stop suicide in all forms, according to the news outlet.
In 2009, the Montana Supreme Court ruled that physician-assisted death was allowed in the state.
Opponents of the bill testified before the state's Senate Judiciary Committee Feb. 1.
"Our ability to prolong life is extensive now," hospice physician Colette Kirchhoff, MD, said in her testimony, according to KTVH. "I am seeing more difficulty at the end of life as far as suffering and more people have made up their minds that when no more can be done, they’d like to choose when, how and where they’re going to die."
The bill must pass a third reading before it can move to be voted on by the state House of Representatives.