The House of Representatives shot down a bill that would expand end-of-life care options on Thursday with a split that was as close as it gets – but its fate isn’t sealed yet.

Lawmakers tabled House Bill 254 on a 183-182 vote after Majority Leader Jason Osborne, a Republican from Auburn, said there was no use discussing it.

“I enjoy the debate of nine speakers that we have lined up here as much as the next guy,” Osborne said. “But I also know that we don’t need to have the same debate every year, not when nothing has changed and not when the outcome of this bill is entirely certain already.”

This bill has repeatedly drawn heated public debate, as New Hampshire lawmakers have considered it several times. For proponents, the law is meant to give individuals the power to make decisions about their final moments, rather than have others do it for them at great pain and expense. For opponents, it creates a slippery slope that devalues the lives of vulnerable groups, including people with disabilities.

This legislation passed the House last year, 179-176, but met its end in the Senate.

Now, it may not make it to the other chamber. The House could still put HB 254 back on the docket, but time is running out to take action. If nothing changes and the bill is left on the table by crossover day on April 10, the last day for each legislative body to act on all bills, HB 254 won’t continue.

“This bill deals with important issues of freedom and personal liberty,” said Bob Lynn, the Windham Republican who sponsored the bill. He asked lawmakers not to “shy away” from debating it.

 

Charlotte Matherly is the statehouse reporter for the Concord Monitor and Monadnock Ledger-Transcript in partnership with Report for America. Follow her on X at @charmatherly, subscribe to her Capital Beat newsletter and send her an email at cmatherly@cmonitor.com.