Illinois § 5

§ 5.

Findings. The General Assembly finds that the process of approval for investigational drugs, biological products, and devices in the United States often takes many years, and a patient with a terminal illness does not have the luxury of waiting until such drug, product, or device receives final approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration. As a result, the standards of the United States Food and Drug Administration for the use of investigational drugs, biological products, and devices may deny the benefits of potentially life-saving treatments to terminally ill patients. A patient with a terminal illness has a fundamental right to attempt to preserve his or her own life by accessing investigational drugs, biological products, and devices. Whether to use available investigational drugs, biological products, and devices is a decision that rightfully should be made by the patient with a terminal illness in consultation with his or her physician and is not a decision to be made by the government. (Source: P.A. 99-270, eff. 1-1-16.)