Sec. 5. Findings.
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/il/chapter-410/act-649/5A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Sec. 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.