NEED TO KNOW
Judy Markey, a longtime WGN Radio host, chose medical aid in dying after suffering from a degenerative neurological disorder
She traveled to Switzerland, where medical aid in dying has been legal since 1942, to end her life
Markey’s death came one day before Illinois legalized medical aid in dying, a cause she strongly supported
A beloved Chicago radio host traveled to Switzerland to end her own life with medical aid in dying.
On Friday, Sept. 11, Judy Markey — an 82-year-old longtime WGN Radio host — died after choosing medical aid in dying (MAID), her co-host Kathy O’Malley announced on air. Markey wanted to die “on her own terms” after suffering from a degenerative neurological disorder.
“After some years with her body in decline, she made the choice she always supported – going out on her terms with a voluntary assisted death in Switzerland,” her obituary read. “This choice was made having lived a full and rich lifetime in which she got ‘more from it than she ever imagined.'”
MAID allows patients with terminal illnesses to end their lives with lethal medication. It’s different from euthanasia because patients administer the prescribed drugs themselves to end their lives, rather than having a doctor administer them. Euthanasia is illegal in the United States.
MAID laws have been authorized in California, Hawaii, New Jersey, New Mexico, Vermont, Colorado, Washington, Delaware, New York, Maine, Montana, Oregon, Washington, D.C., and now, Illinois.
Judy Markey and Kathy O’Malley
Credit: E. Jason Wambsgans/Tribune Content Agency LLC / Alamy
Because of the previous restrictions in Illinois, Markey traveled to Switzerland to end her life. Medical aid in dying has been legal in Switzerland since 1942, according to Dignity in Dying, a British organization.
O’Malley explained that she had known about Markey’s decision for at least a year before her death.
“Her body was really failing. She felt it, and those of us who loved her could see that she was slowing down, that she had issues with balance and pain and struggle,” she explained. “Judy and I were big supporters of medical aid in dying for a long time…and she said, ‘You know what? I’m not gonna let this drag on for 10 years.’ She could feel that she was getting worse.”
“Sometimes death takes a long time and that’s not easy on anybody, including the people who love the person,” she continued, pointing out the “selflessness” of the decision and how much she supported her friend. “So yeah, I was totally with Judy all the way with this. ‘You go, girl!’ “
Judy Markey in 1986.
Credit: Alex Gotfryd/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty
O’Malley and Markey co-hosted the “Kathy and Judy Show” from 1989 to 2009, known among their audience as “The Girlfriends.” The show was picked up again in 2013 for a four-year run.
Markey’s husband, Tom Collinger, told the Chicago Sun-Times that she had no fear in her final months, or moments, of life. He said she ate a Snickers bar before her death and joked about having a headache.
“I said ‘Do you want some Advil? And she said, ‘I kind of want something a little stronger,'” he recalled, noting that her last joke landed with everyone in the room. “She had a life that exceeded all her expectations. In the end she was comforting others.”
The day after Markey’s death, the Illinois law legalizing MAID took effect. “She was ahead of her time by making this decision,” her former WGN producer Beth Swierk said on air.
Read the original article on People