The first was filed in June by the group End Assisted Suicide, a coalition of disability and patients rights advocates, which claimed it put the lives and well-being of people with disabilities at risk.

“Assisted suicide laws in New York and Illinois create a separate and unequal system in which people with life-threatening disabilities are offered death instead of the support programs everyone else gets,” Matt Vallière, president/executive director of plaintiff organization Institute for Patients’ Rights, said. “These legal actions are about affirming that every person has inestimable value and dignity, regardless of age, disability, or prognosis, and ensuring that no one is treated as disposable under the law.”

The second was filed on August 11 by a coalition of religious plaintiffs, including Springfield Bishop Thomas Paprocki, the Lutheran Care Center, and four physicians. The group is represented by the Thomas More Society, and claimed the law violates the constitutional right to freedom of speech and religion.

“Illinois is forcing faith-based hospitals, nuns, and doctors into supporting the state’s assisted suicide regime," Peter Breen, Executive Vice President and Head of Litigation at TMS, said. "The law commands Catholic hospitals, religious nursing homes, and faithful doctors to promote suicide’s alleged ‘benefits,’ refer patients to suicide drug prescribers, and then lie on death certificates to cover it up. This immoral scheme flagrantly violates religious liberty and free speech rights, and we intend to stop it.”

Our commitment to caring for patients facing serious and terminal illnesses remains unchanged. We will continue to provide comprehensive, high-quality care focused on helping patients and families navigate complex healthcare decisions.

Quincy Medical Group (QMG) is here for our patients and their families through all of life’s stages, including the times when serious or terminal illness brings difficult decisions.

Under Illinois’ End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act, also known as Deb’s Law, healthcare providers and healthcare institutions in Illinois may choose whether to participate in the medical aid-in-dying process. QMG has elected not to participate.

Our QMG physicians and care teams will continue to be there to support patients and families as they navigate their care and the decisions that come with it.

We recognize this is a deeply personal topic, and we are committed to providing respectful and compassionate care to all patients at the end of life.

Memorial Health has joined many other hospitals across the state in opting out of the End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act, and we will not provide medical aid-in-dying care.

However, if a patient requests these services, we will assist in referring them to a physician or organization that would be able to evaluate their request.

The first was filed in June by the group End Assisted Suicide, a coalition of disability and patients rights advocates, which claimed it put the lives and well-being of people with disabilities at risk.

“Assisted suicide laws in New York and Illinois create a separate and unequal system in which people with life-threatening disabilities are offered death instead of the support programs everyone else gets,” Matt Vallière, president/executive director of plaintiff organization Institute for Patients’ Rights, said. “These legal actions are about affirming that every person has inestimable value and dignity, regardless of age, disability, or prognosis, and ensuring that no one is treated as disposable under the law.”

The second was filed on August 11 by a coalition of religious plaintiffs, including Springfield Bishop Thomas Paprocki, the Lutheran Care Center, and four physicians. The group is represented by the Thomas More Society, and claimed the law violates the constitutional right to freedom of speech and religion.

“Illinois is forcing faith-based hospitals, nuns, and doctors into supporting the state’s assisted suicide regime," Peter Breen, Executive Vice President and Head of Litigation at TMS, said. "The law commands Catholic hospitals, religious nursing homes, and faithful doctors to promote suicide’s alleged ‘benefits,’ refer patients to suicide drug prescribers, and then lie on death certificates to cover it up. This immoral scheme flagrantly violates religious liberty and free speech rights, and we intend to stop it.”

Our commitment to caring for patients facing serious and terminal illnesses remains unchanged. We will continue to provide comprehensive, high-quality care focused on helping patients and families navigate complex healthcare decisions.

Quincy Medical Group (QMG) is here for our patients and their families through all of life’s stages, including the times when serious or terminal illness brings difficult decisions.

Under Illinois’ End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act, also known as Deb’s Law, healthcare providers and healthcare institutions in Illinois may choose whether to participate in the medical aid-in-dying process. QMG has elected not to participate.

Our QMG physicians and care teams will continue to be there to support patients and families as they navigate their care and the decisions that come with it.

We recognize this is a deeply personal topic, and we are committed to providing respectful and compassionate care to all patients at the end of life.

Memorial Health has joined many other hospitals across the state in opting out of the End-of-Life Options for Terminally Ill Patients Act, and we will not provide medical aid-in-dying care.

However, if a patient requests these services, we will assist in referring them to a physician or organization that would be able to evaluate their request.