On February 10, 2020, the Evanston, IL city council held a hearing to adopt a resolution encouraging the Illinois legislature to introduce and pass medical aid-in-dying legislation. Compassion & Choices Evanston Action Team Leader Fay Clayton helped set the tone for the evening with compelling testimony about the positive impact medical aid in dying would have on people living with an incurable and terminal condition, however the resolution was ultimately struck from the agenda on procedural grounds.
Compassion & Choices is part of the Illinois End-of-Life Options Coalition alongside Final Options Illinois and the ACLU. Learn more by clicking here.
The Compassion & Choices Volunteer Network is working to grow Illinois’ volunteer infrastructure to educate the public, empower healthcare consumers and advocate for expanded options at the end-of-life. Currently, Compassion & Choices has over 17,000 supporters and 130 volunteers in Illinois. Volunteers are tabling at health fairs, focusing on the Truth in Treatment initiative and physician engagement, and passing local resolutions. Volunteers are also holding screenings of the documentary “How to Die in Oregon,” which shows how the landmark Oregon law works. We need volunteers and action teams to help advance the end-of-life choice movement in your state — sign up today!
As a volunteer with Compassion & Choices, you’ll join thousands of dedicated supporters who want to transform the woefully inadequate medical systems in this country and give people the options they want and deserve to chart their own end-of-life journey. Compassion & Choices is dedicated to improving care and expanding options for the end of life. Volunteers work diligently to build grassroots support for end-of-life liberty.
Action teams are a critical part of Compassion & Choices. Illinois currently has volunteer groups in McLean County, Champaign/Urbana, Chicago, the Far West Suburbs, the North West Suburbs, Evanston, Oak Park and Springfield. These teams bring together and train other volunteers in their area to coordinate outreach efforts to local officials and educate communities and health professionals. Illinois was one of 40 states in which Compassion & Choices provided policy and technical assistance to state officials or their offices in 2017-2018. If you’re interested in starting or joining an action team in your town or city, please click here.
Compassion & Choices envisions a society that affirms life and accepts the inevitability of death, embraces expanded options for compassionate dying, and empowers everyone to choose end-of-life care that reflects their values, priorities and beliefs. We offer educational opportunities and tools to help people assess, define and communicate their values around end-of-life care — like our Finish Strong Tools and End-of-Life Resource Center. We also are excited to announce the release of Finish Strong, a book by Compassion & Choices President Barbara Coombs Lee. Available January 8, 2019, Finish Strong is for those of us who want an end-of-life experience to match the life we’ve enjoyed — defined by love, purpose and agency. It is full of stories, facts and dialogue that will help each of us prepare for latter days that reflect our values and priorities.
State-specific advance directives make clear your end-of-life preferences if you are unable to make or communicate medical treatment decisions yourself. For the Illinois advance directive form, click here.
If you have been invited to an upcoming event, keep an eye out for email updates, as we may postpone, cancel, or change the format of events as needed on an event-by-event basis.
We’re monitoring this rapidly-evolving situation closely to make the most informed decisions about events and gatherings. If you have any questions, please reach out via our contact form.
