Hochul says aid in dying was 'one of the toughest decisions' she's made

And New York's drinking water council decided against recommending stricter PFAS limits this week.

Good afternoon — It’s Wednesday and Maple Syrup Day.

In today’s CapCon:

• Both supporters and opponents of the Medical Aid in Dying Act say there’s more work to do after Gov. Kathy Hochul agreed to sign it Wednesday.

• New York’s drinking water quality council rejected a motion to recommend stricter PFAS limits amid proposed federal rollbacks.

• U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler went rogue Wednesday, joining three other Republicans to force a vote on health care tax credits.

• A new bill seeks to enact new limits on how corporations influence politics and ballot issues in New York.

Names in today’s CapCon: Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Kathy Hochul, Amy Paulin, Brad Hoylman-Sigal, Timothy Dolan, Corinne Carey, Gary Ginsberg, Rob Hayes, Mike Lawler, Mike Johnson, Kristen Gonzalez

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💌 YOU’RE INVITED: State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins will join me at the Hearst Media Center in Colonie for an in-person interview at our Capitol Confidential Pro launch party on Jan. 6 in Albany. Reserve your spot here.

Lawmakers and supported of the Medical Aid in Dying Act this year (Will Waldron/Times Union)

🖋️ Hochul strikes deal with lawmakers on changes to Medical Aid in Dying Act

Gov. Kathy Hochul has agreed to sign the Medical Aid in Dying Act, which will allow doctors to prescribe life-ending medication to terminally ill patients with less than six months to live.

“This is one of the toughest decisions I’ve made as governor,” Hochul said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon.

Hochul revealed her support for the bill in an op-ed published this morning in the Times Union, which you can read here.

It’s the first time she had publicly stated a definitive position on the bill. Hochul wrote that she contemplated her decision on the bill while she was at the Catholic funeral Mass of a family friend.

“I was taught that God is merciful and compassionate, and so must we be,” Hochul wrote. “This includes permitting a merciful option to those facing the unimaginable and searching to comfort in their final months in this life.”

Lawmakers agreed to make several changes to the bill in exchange for Hochul’s approval, which will happen when the state Legislature returns to Albany in January.

Hochul’s changes: Patients who seek a prescription under the law will have to make a video or audio recording of that request and undergo a mental health evaluation. They won’t be able to fill the prescription until five days after it’s written.

The bill had already required that a witness be present when the patient makes their request. Lawmakers will add language to prohibit that witness from being anyone who would financially benefit from that person’s death.

Only residents of New York will be eligible and religiously oriented hospice providers will be allowed to opt out of offering those prescriptions. Any physician who violates the law will be subject to professional misconduct discipline.

The final change will delay the law’s effective date until six months after it’s signed. The state Department of Health will promulgate regulations for its implementation in the meantime.

Assemblywoman Amy Paulin (Will Waldron/Times Union)

How we got here: It’s one of the most, if not the most, controversial bill Hochul was expected to consider before the end of the year. Lawmakers had been engaged in negotiations but the bill’s fate had been uncertain.

Hochul’s approval is a milestone accomplishment for Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, who’s sponsored the bill since it was first introduced a decade ago. She’s often spoken about her sister’s painful, slow death from ovarian cancer.

“Her experience is, tragically, the story of so many others. Most people will never choose medical aid in dying, but they want the reassurance of having it as a compassionate safeguard that offers comfort even if it is never used,” Paulin said.

The bill wasn’t expected to pass the Legislature this year. That changed when Paulin was able to secure enough votes for it to clear the Assembly, saying newly elected members gave her the numbers she needed to get it across the finish line.