Seniors lobby for Berg bill
Several senior groups spent Wednesday lobbying for North Coast Assemblywoman Patty Berg's California Compassionate Choices Act.
The bill, Assembly Bill 651, would allow terminally ill Californians to request prescriptions for life-ending medication. Berg, D-Eureka, and Assemblyman Lloyd Levine, D-Van Nuys, introduced it in February 2005.
The Congress of California Seniors, California Commission on Aging, Older Women's League of California, Gray Panthers and California Seniors Coalition spent Wednesday lobbying for the bill, Berg's office reported.
”These people are bringing a powerful message to the Capitol,” Berg said in a statement. “They speak with a wealth of experience about life and death. I hope my colleagues are listening.”
The bill would allow residents with a prognosis of six months or less to live to obtain a prescription. They must be mentally evaluated, must administer the medication themselves, and must have two doctors' opinions.
”We believe this is an important step in giving people control of their lives,” said Ruth Kletzing of the Older Women's League of California in a press release.
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