Department of Health and Social Services
Division of Public Health
Scope and Purpose
A terminally ill adult individual who has decision-making capacity has the right to request and self-administer medication to end the individual's life in a humane and dignified manner.
A terminally ill individual should not be coerced, pressured, or otherwise compelled to self-administer medication to end the individual's life and the decision to self-administer medication to end life must be made voluntarily by a terminally ill adult individual with decision-making capacity, not by a guardian or other surrogate health-care decision maker or by the individual in an advance health-care directive.
Health-care providers shall not be subject to civil or criminal liability or professional discipline for honoring a request from a terminally ill adult individual for medication to end the individual’s life in a humane and dignified manner that is made in compliance with the requirements of 16 Del.C. Ch. 25C .
The self-administration of medication to end life in a humane and dignified manner by a terminally ill adult shall not impact life insurance or annuity policies.
This regulation facilitates the collection of information regarding compliance with 16 Del.C. Ch. 25C End of Life Options.
Authority
This regulation is promulgated pursuant to the statutory authority provided under 85 Del. Laws , c. 19 and 16 Del.C. §2511C(a)(1) .
Reporting (Pursuant to 16 Del.C. §2511C )
Within 30 calendar days of writing a prescription for medication to end the life of a qualified patient, the attending physician or attending APRN shall send the following completed, signed, and dated documentation by USPS mail to the Health Statistics Center at the Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics, James Williams State Service Center, Suite 109, 805 River Road, Dover, DE 19901 or secure electronic email to the Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics at [email protected] :
A copy of the patient's completed written request for medication to end life, either using the Written Request for Medication to End My Life in a Humane and Dignified Manner (Appendix A of this regulation) form or in substantially the form described in 16 Del.C. §2505C ;
Attending Physician or Attending APRN Compliance Form (Appendix B of this regulation);
Consulting Physician or Consulting APRN Compliance Form (Appendix C of this regulation);
Psychiatrist or Psychologist Compliance Form (Appendix D of this regulation), if an evaluation was performed.
Within 30 calendar days of dispensing medication, the dispensing health care provider shall send a copy of the Medication Dispensing Form (Appendix E of this regulation) to the Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics, by USPS mail or secure electronic mail. Information to be reported shall include:
The patient's name and date of birth;
The prescribing physician or APRN's name, phone number, and drug enforcement administration certificate number, pursuant to 16 Del.C. §2508C(12)(a) ;
The dispensing health care provider's name, address, phone number, and pharmacist license number;
The medication dispensed and quantity;
The date the prescription was written; and
The date the medication was dispensed.
Within 20 calendar days of a patient's ingestion of lethal medication obtained pursuant to the Act, or death from any other cause, whichever comes first, the attending physician or attending APRN shall complete the Attending Physician or Attending APRN Follow-Up Form (Appendix F of this regulation) to the Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics by USPS mail or secure electronic mail.
The Division shall make the forms accessible on the Department website https://dhss.delaware.gov/dph/eolo/ .
Annual Report (Pursuant to 16 Del.C. §2511C )
The Division shall generate and make available to the public an annual statistical report of information collected. Data will be aggregated to ensure the protection of the individual’s privacy. This annual statistical report will be made available online at https://dhss.delaware.gov/dph/eolo/ .
Data elements to be included in the annual statistical report shall include, at a minimum, the following:
The number of individuals who received prescriptions (written or filled);
The number of individuals who died after ingesting;
The number of individuals who died without having ingested or died from other causes;
Demographics:
Sex;
Age group;
Race/ethnicity;
Enrollment in hospice at the time of death;
Underlying illness (also known as the primary terminal diagnosis); and
Place of death.
APPENDIX A
Written Request for Medication to End My Life in a Humane and Dignified Manner
https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title16/4603/ABB89CF8-A5EB-4302-947F-B80E074051AE
APPENDIX B
Attending Physician or Attending APRN Compliance Form
https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title16/4603/6A93E9BA-5746-4B25-9C8D-ADD70BF4212E
APPENDIX C
Consulting Physician or Consulting APRN Compliance Form
https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title16/4603/30A02782-EB00-40F3-820F-C263F464CF8F
APPENDIX D
Psychiatrist or Psychologist Compliance Form
https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title16/4603/5ED66191-0DD6-43AD-AC48-0DC2C978AB71
APPENDIX E
Medication Dispensing Form
https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title16/4603/7D22E8F3-0A47-4173-BAC1-B62B7F1CA066
APPENDIX F
Attending Physician or Attending APRN Follow-Up Form
https://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title16/4603/03A309E4-30A0-4E57-B9B2-13B3FC35B8C9
29 DE Reg. 783 (03/01/26)