February 6, 2026: Governor Kathy Hochul signed the Medical Aid in Dying Act today, making New York the 14th jurisdiction (13 states plus Washington D.C.) where MAID is legal.
This approval followed the actions of the Assembly and the Senate passing the underlying bill late last Spring. The Governor desired a number of changes to the bill that, in her view, would provide additional safeguards. The possibility of making these changes was negotiated with legislative leaders during the Fall.
The Assembly and Senate voted to accept these changes on February 4, paving the way for the Governor to sign the bill. MAID will begin operating this summer, giving time for the medical system to prepare and for the Department of Health to issue regulations.
The Changes
Compared with the bill passed last Spring, the new law will:
• Require that the initial evaluation of a patient by the attending physician be in person, unless the physician believes an in-person evaluation would result in extraordinary hardship to the patient.
• Require that a recording of the patient’s oral request to their physician be placed in their medical records.
• Require that the patient be a resident of New York.
• Require that the patient be evaluated by a mental health professional (a psychologist, psychiatrist, or neurologist), to determine whether the patient has decision-making capacity to make an informed decision.
• Require a waiting period of five days between when the physician writes a prescription and when the pharmacist fills it, unless the patient will die within that period.
• Ensure that a patient receiving hospice care at home is not prevented from accessing medical aid in dying, even if the hospice provider does not offer medical aid in dying based on its religious beliefs.
• Delay implementation of the law until six months after signing.