California Assisted Suicide deaths increase by 20%. 405 reported assisted suicide deaths in 2019.

Alex Schadenberg
Executive Director, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition

From June 9, 2016 until December 31, 2019 there have been 1283 reported assisted suicide deaths in California.

The 2019 California annual assisted suicide report is similar to other US jurisdictions were the report implies that the assisted suicide deaths were voluntary and self administered, but the information in the report does not address that subject.

The California assisted suicide data comes from the reports submitted by the doctors who carry-out the assisted suicide death. It is not possible, based on the reporting system, to uncover under-reporting or abuse of assisted suicide.

Order the pamphlet - Shedding light on assisted suicide in America.

According to the 2019 California assisted suicide report:

• In 2019, 618 prescriptions for lethal drugs were written, up from 452 in 2018.
• In 2019 there were 405 reported assisted suicide deaths up from 337 in 2019.
• Out of 405 reported assisted suicide deaths, 27 received the lethal drugs in previous years.
• Out of 618 prescriptions for lethal drugs 90 deaths were from the underlying illness or other causes. 
• Out of 618 prescriptions for lethal drugs, the ingestion status is unknown in 150 cases. 82 of the 150 are known to have died, but the ingestion status remains unknown.

There may be more assisted suicide deaths. Some of the 150 people who's ingestion status is unknown, may have died by assisted suicide. It is likely that some of the 82 people who have died but the ingestion status is unknown, died by assisted suicide. The California assisted suicide law uses a self-reporting system making unreported assisted suicide deaths possible.

Last year a nurse plead not guilty to murder, in a California court, based on allegedly injecting her friend with assisted suicide drugs. The case shows how lethal drugs may have been used to kill someone outside of the law.

In December 2017, a former California politician, Steven Clute, was charged with assisting the suicide of his wife, Pamela, in August 2016.

From June 9, 2016, when assisted suicide was legalized, and December 31, 2019 there have been 1283 reported assisted suicide deaths. The number of assisted suicide deaths do not equal the number of deaths in the reports due to the timing of death reports received and other factors.

Link to the article: California 2018 assisted suicide report - 337 reported assisted suicide deaths (Link).