United States
As of 2019, physician-assisted dying is legal in eight states (California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont, Washington) and Washington D.C.Spending on those in the last twelve months accounts for 8.5% of total aggregate medical spending in the United States.When considering only those aged 65 and older, estimates show that about 27% of Medicares annual $327 billion budget ($88 billion) in 2006 goes to care for patients in their final year of life. For the over-65s, between 1992 and 1996, spending on those in their last year of life represented 22% of all medical spending, 18% of all non-Medicare spending, and 25 percent of all Medicaid spending for the poor. These percentages appears to be falling over time, as in 2008, 16.8% of all medical spending on the over 65s went on those in their last year of life.Predicting death is difficult, which has affected estimates of spending in the last year of life; when controlling for spending on patients who were predicted as likely to die, Medicare spending was estimated at 5% of the total. See also
Advance health care directive
Death midwife
Hospice
Liverpool Care Pathway
Palliative care
Childrens palliative care
Physician assisted suicide
Robert Martensen

References
Further reading
External links
"End of Life Issues". MedlinePlus. "EndLink - Resource for End of Life Care Education". Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center. Northwestern University. Archived from the original on 2010-11-18. "End of life care". NHS Choices. 29 May 2018. "End of Life Care Strategy - promoting high quality care for all adults at the end of life". Publications policy and guidance. UK Department of Health.
The palliative care approach to spiritual care may, however, be transferred to other contexts and to individual practice.Spiritual, cultural, and religious beliefs may influence or guide patient preferences regarding end-of-life care. Healthcare providers caring for patients at the end of life can engage family members and encourage conversations about spiritual practices to better address the different needs of diverse patient populations. Studies have shown that people who identify as religious also report higher levels of well-being. Religion has also been shown to be inversely correlated with depression and suicide. While religion provides some benefits to patients, there is some evidence of increased anxiety and other negative outcomes in some studies. While spirituality has been associated with less aggressive end-of-life care, religion has been associated with an increased desire for aggressive care in some patients. Despite these varied outcomes, spiritual and religious care remains an important aspect of care for patients. Studies have shown that barriers  to providing adequate spiritual and religious care include a lack of cultural understanding, limited time, and a lack of formal training or experience.Many hospitals, nursing homes, and hospice centers have chaplains who provide spiritual support and grief counseling to patients and families of all religious and cultural backgrounds. Attitudes of healthcare professionals
End-of-life care is an interdisciplinary endeavor involving physicians, nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, pharmacists and social workers. Depending on the facility and level of care needed, the composition of the interprofessional team can vary.