California has experienced the highest number of yearly assisted suicides on record, with a total of 1,235 deaths in 2025, a 149.49% increase over five years.
Released this week, the California End of Life Option Act 2025 Data Report shows a 10.96% increase in total deaths from assisted suicide compared with the previous year, when there were 1,113 assisted suicides. There was an almost 150% increase in assisted suicides in California in 2025 compared with 2020, when there were 495 assisted suicides.
Under California’s End of Life Option Act, a resident of the state can be provided with life-ending drugs if they are thought to have six months or less to live. Since California made assisted suicide legal in June 2016, a total of 6,758 people have ended their lives this way.
The 1,235 deaths account for 0.438% of all deaths for residents of California in 2025.
Among those who ended their lives by state-assisted suicide, the concerns that contributed to the decision to end their lives were primarily non-medical. These included 84.1% of those who ended their lives saying “loss of dignity”, 96.10% saying being “less able to engage in activities making life enjoyable”, and 94.70% saying “loss of autonomy” were contributing reasons for ending their lives by assisted suicide.
