terminally ill

They grapple over cases where pain might be alleviated by money, adequate housing or social connection, and express deep discomfort with ending lives of people whose deaths were avoidable.

The Vermont law allows physicians to prescribe lethal medication to only state residents with an incurable illness that is expected to kill them within six months.

Some patient groups, including the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network and the American Lung Association opposed the bill because they said it could do more harm than good.

States and federal lawmakers want patients to be able to request access to treatments that haven't been approved for wider use.