1. First, the requester must orally ask his or her attending physician for the
medication. Then, not fewer than 15 days later, the requester must again request
the medication, using a valid request form that is substantially in the form specified
in the bill, is in writing, is signed in the presence of three qualified witnesses and
dated by the requester, is made voluntarily, and is filed in the requester's patient

health care record. After the written request is filed, the requester must orally ask
his or her attending physician a second time for the medication. The attending
physician may not prescribe a medication to fulfill a request for medication until at
least 48 hours after the second oral request.

2. The requester's attending physician must determine that the requester
meets the requirements for making the request. The attending physician must also
complete all of the following additional requirements: a) informing the requester of
his or her diagnosis and prognosis, the probable results of taking the prescribed
medication, and the alternatives to doing so; b) referring the requester to a
consulting physician for review; c) if the requester may be suffering from a
psychiatric or psychological disorder, referring the requester to a psychiatrist or
psychologist for review; d) documenting certain information in the requester's
patient health care record and certifying that requirements have been met regarding
the request; e) asking the requester to inform his or her next of kin about the request;
f) informing the requester that the request is revocable and offering an opportunity
to revoke it; and g) reporting information about the request to DHS.

3. A consulting physician to whom the requester is referred must medically
confirm the attending physician's diagnosis and determination that the requester
meets the requirements for making the request. Any psychologist or psychiatrist to
whom the requester is referred by the attending or consulting physician must
determine and certify in writing that the requester is not suffering from a psychiatric
or psychological disorder, including depression, that causes impaired judgment.

The bill specifies that, if the requester is a resident of a nursing home or
community-based residential facility, at least one of the witnesses to the written
request for medication must be a residents' advocate designated by the Board on
Aging and Long-Term Care. The bill also specifies procedures by which a requester
may revoke a request for medication and provides that making a request for
medication does not revoke or otherwise modify a declaration to physicians or health
care power of attorney that a requester may have. The bill provides that making a
request for medication does not constitute attempted suicide and that taking
medication under a fulfilled request does not constitute suicide. The bill establishes
penalties for certain actions with regard to the request for medication, but prohibits
a health care facility or health care provider from being charged with a crime, being
held civilly liable, or being charged with unprofessional conduct for failing to fulfill
a request (except that an attending physician who refuses to fulfill a valid request
and fails to make a good faith attempt to transfer the requester to another physician
who will fulfill the request may be charged with unprofessional conduct), for
fulfilling a valid request, or for acting contrary to or failing to act on a revocation of
a request unless the health care facility or health care provider has actual knowledge
of the revocation.

This bill also provides that, when a patient dies as a result of a request for
medication under the bill, a physician or other person having knowledge of the death
need not report the death to the sheriff, medical examiner, or coroner of the county
or the police chief of the community where the death took place, as is required for
certain deaths, including suicides, under current law.