An apparently level trend but with unknowns
Washington State published its report during the summer on physician-assisted suicide in the State during 2014. 126 people, compared with 119 in 2013, died after ingesting legally-supplied lethal drugs. This apparent 6 per cent increase is subject to a fairly large margin of error. There are reported to be 27 persons to whom lethal drugs were supplied and who are known to have died, but it was not known at the time of reporting whether or not their deaths were attributable to ingestion of those drugs. The report also shows that 72 per cent of those to whom lethal drugs were supplied were aged 65 or over and that 8 per cent (nearly one in twelve) gave as a reason for seeking such drugs that they were concerned about the financial implications of tetament. The full report from Washington State can be read here.
LDW-Research-Washington-2014