(a) An individual seeking to obtain a prescription for an aid-in-dying drug pursuant to this part shall submit two oral requests, a minimum of 48 hours apart, and a written request to their attending physician. An attending physician shall directly, and not through a designee, receive a request required pursuant to this section and shall ensure the date of a request is documented in an individual’s medical record. An oral request documented in an individual’s medical record shall not be disregarded by an attending physician solely because it was received by a prior attending physician or an attending physician who chose not to participate.

(b) A valid written request for an aid-in-dying drug under subdivision (a) shall meet all of the following conditions:

Terms Used In California Health and Safety Code 443.3

  • Adult: means an individual 18 years of age or older. See California Health and Safety Code 443.1
  • Aid-in-dying drug: means a drug determined and prescribed by a physician for a qualified individual, which the qualified individual may choose to self-administer to bring about their death due to a terminal disease. See California Health and Safety Code 443.1
  • Attending physician: means the physician who has primary responsibility for the health care of an individual and treatment of the individual's terminal disease. See California Health and Safety Code 443.1
  • Consulting physician: means a physician who is independent from the attending physician and who is qualified by specialty or experience to make a professional diagnosis and prognosis regarding an individual's terminal disease. See California Health and Safety Code 443.1
  • Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
  • Health care entity: means any clinic, health dispensary, or health facility licensed pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with Section 1200), including a general hospital, medical clinic, nursing home or hospice facility. See California Health and Safety Code 443.1
  • Mental health specialist: means a psychiatrist or a licensed psychologist. See California Health and Safety Code 443.1
  • Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
  • Physician: means a doctor of medicine or osteopathy currently licensed to practice medicine in this state. See California Health and Safety Code 443.1
  • Qualified individual: means an adult who has the capacity to make medical decisions, is a resident of California, and has satisfied the requirements of this part in order to obtain a prescription for a drug to end their life. See California Health and Safety Code 443.1

(1) The request shall be in the form described in Section 443.11.

(2) The request shall be signed and dated, in the presence of two witnesses, by the individual seeking the aid-in-dying drug.

(3) The request shall be witnessed by at least two other adult persons who, in the presence of the individual, shall attest that to the best of their knowledge and belief the individual is all of the following:

(A) An individual who is personally known to them or has provided proof of identity.

(B) An individual who voluntarily signed this request in their presence.

(C) An individual whom they believe to be of sound mind and not under duress, fraud, or undue influence.

(D) Not an individual for whom either of them is the attending physician, consulting physician, or mental health specialist.

(c) Only one of the two witnesses at the time the written request is signed may:

(1) Be related to the qualified individual by blood, marriage, registered domestic partnership, or adoption or be entitled to a portion of the individual’s estate upon death.

(2) Own, operate, or be employed at a health care entity where the individual is receiving medical treatment or resides.

(d) The attending physician, consulting physician, or mental health specialist of the individual shall not be one of the witnesses required pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (b).

(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 542, Sec. 2. (SB 380) Effective January 1, 2022. Repealed as of January 1, 2031, pursuant to Section 443.215.)

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