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Illinois just crossed a line it will regret. On December 12, 2025, Governor JB Pritzker signed SB1950 (“Deb’s Law”) to legalize “medical aid in dying” in Illinois, scheduled to take effect September 12, 2026.

Supporters call this “compassion.” I call it a cultural pivot: when… pic.twitter.com/MHewMkC8UJ

— Sheriff James Mendrick for Governor (@Mendrick4Gov) December 18, 2025

Illinois just crossed a line it will regret. On December 12, 2025, Governor JB Pritzker signed SB1950 (“Deb’s Law”) to legalize “medical aid in dying” in Illinois, scheduled to take effect September 12, 2026.

Supporters call this “compassion.” I call it a cultural pivot: when government and medicine normalize suicide as a solution, the definition of “care” starts to change—and history shows it doesn’t stay confined to the original promise.

What the Illinois law says (and why people are still alarmed)

Illinois’ new law is framed as an end-of-life option for adults who are terminally ill (generally six months or less), must be mentally capable, must make multiple requests, and must self-administer the medication.

Even with those guardrails, the core question remains:
Do we want the State of Illinois validating suicide as a medical “treatment,” instead of doubling down on pain control, hospice access, mental health support, and family-centered care? (Even opponents cited by AP pointed to the contradiction of trying to prevent suicide in teens while legalizing it for others.)

“That could never happen here” — other countries show how the boundaries move

When lawmakers sell assisted dying, it’s almost always introduced as a narrow, compassionate policy. But once the underlying principle becomes “some lives are better ended,” the eligible categories expand—especially where the line between physical suffering and psychological suffering gets blurred.

Canada (MAID): scale and normalization
Canada’s federal reporting shows MAID has grown into a significant share of deaths—5.1% of all deaths in 2024 involved MAID.

In 2023, Health Canada reported 15,343 MAID provisions (with 19,660 total reported request cases/outcomes tracked in the report’s framework).

That’s not a niche policy anymore. That’s normalization.

Netherlands: euthanasia for psychiatric suffering—including young people

The Netherlands reports a rising number of euthanasia cases overall—9,958 euthanasia notifications in 2024 (a 10% increase over 2023).

Crucially, 219 of those 2024 cases involved suffering largely caused by psychiatric disorders.

And here is the part that should stop every parent and policymaker cold:

A JAMA Psychiatry cohort study looked at 353 Dutch people under age 24 who filed 397 applications for MAID based on psychiatric suffering (2012–2021). Outcomes included 3% who died by MAID and 4% who died by suicide during the application process. JAMA Network

So yes—real “aid-in-dying” systems do end up intersecting with depression, suicidality, and youth. Not as a hypothetical. As documented outcomes.

Illinois should be leading with hope—not a faster exit

Illinois is already struggling with mental health crises, suicide prevention messaging, unequal access to quality care, and families who can’t afford long-term support.

In that context, the State’s priority should be crystal clear: make it easier to live with dignity—not easier to die.

If someone is in pain, we should expand palliative care.

If someone is afraid, we should improve family-centered end-of-life support.

If someone is depressed, we should treat depression like the medical emergency it is—with intervention, not validation.

My position

I oppose this law because I don’t believe “freedom” means putting vulnerable people—especially the elderly, disabled, poor, isolated, or depressed—into a system where death becomes a “care plan.”

Illinois can be compassionate without crossing this moral boundary.