Pope disappointed over approval of assisted suicide legislation in his home state of Illinois

Illinois has become the latest US state to legalise medically assisted suicide after Governor JB Pritzker signed the bill into law on 12 December. The measure, known as Deb’s Law, will allow terminally ill adults to end their lives with medical help. Delaware is also set to introduce a similar law in January 2026.

Governor Pritzker, in office since 2019, approved the legislation after hearing accounts of patients suffering from incurable conditions. The law is named in honour of Deb Robertson, a terminally ill resident whose advocacy helped push the bill forward. Illinois now joins eleven other states and the District of Columbia in permitting the practice.

Before the signing, Pope Leo XIV had urged Pritzker to reject the bill, citing Catholic teaching on the sanctity of life from conception to natural death. The state’s six Catholic dioceses later condemned the law, calling it a *dangerous and heartbreaking path*. Despite opposition, the governor proceeded, making Illinois the twelfth US jurisdiction to allow medically assisted suicide. The move comes as seven other states consider similar legislation. Delaware’s own law, set to take effect on 1 January 2026, will follow the same model, granting terminally ill patients the option to request life-ending medication under strict conditions.

The new law in Illinois will provide terminally ill residents with a legal route to end their suffering. With Delaware’s legislation approaching, the number of states permitting medically assisted suicide continues to grow. Religious groups, however, maintain their stance against the practice, arguing it contradicts ethical and moral principles.