The first annual report is out!
The Hawai‘i Department of Health released their first report on the Our Care, Our Choice Act!
Hawaii’s Our Care, Our Choice Act went into effect on January 1, 2019. The Act authorizes medical aid in dying in the state, after nearly 20 years of on-the-ground organizing by supporters and Compassion & Choices. Governor David Ige signed the law on April 5, 2018.
On July 1, 2019, the Department of Health released their first report on the Our Care, Our Choice Act. Eight Hawai‘i residents received prescriptions from four different physicians, signaling a successful start for the Access Campaign in Hawai‘i.
Thank you to all who worked so hard to see the Our Care, Our Choice Act become reality.
Accessing the Law
If you’re a Hawai‘i resident who believes that medical aid in dying is a compassionate and important end-of-life option and would like to know which medical facilities and hospices have policies supportive of end-of-life choice, we will soon be adding these facilities and hospices to our online Find Care Tool. This tool can help you find a healthcare team that will honor your end-of-life values. Stay tuned!
Education and Outreach
Compassion & Choices has launched the Hawai’i Access Campaign, a volunteer-led effort to educate the public, health care professionals and health systems. The campaign works to ensure that people know how to access this and other end-of-life options and that institutions put supportive policies in place, so eligible patients will be able to access medical aid in dying if they choose. Compassion & Choices’ materials are available in seven languages in order to reach as many Hawaiians as possible.
PSAs
To coincide with the implementation of the Our Care, Our Choice Act, Compassion & Choices launched a series of PSAs to educate Hawai‘i residents about the law.
View them here.
