By Akanksha
Oscar-nominated actress and Broadway star Barbara Barrie passed away at her Manhattan home on Wednesday, October 28, at the age of 95, after choosing to end her life peacefully using end-of-life medication under the New York’s new Medical Aid in Dying Act. Barrie, who was recently diagnosed with terminal cancer, decided to end her life peacefully after suffering from an incurable lung disease for the past 10 years.
Barrie’s agent, Gary Gersh, and her daughter, actress Jane Harnick, confirmed her peaceful passing following the terminal diagnosis. Around three weeks prior to her death, Barrie was admitted to the hospital as her health rapidly declined. It was there that she was informed she was eligible to exercise her right under New York’s Medical Aid in Dying Act, which she had passionately campaigned for.
Despite the rapid progression of her illness, Barrie stayed very involved during her last few days. She stayed up to date with the news, listened to her favorite radio station, and was actively involved in planning her own memorial service alongside her family.
In an interview with People published on October 30, her daughter, Jane Harnick, revealed that Barrie spent her final day reading The New York Times in bed, listening to WQXR, and talking with her family. This offered a glimpse into the ordinary activities she continued to enjoy until her final day.
“We were planning her death and her memorial at the same time, and she was fine with it,” Jane told Page Six, noting that her mother had clear opinions on who should speak and what music should be played. “She was ready to go. She knew 95 was old enough.”
Barrie’s family was very supportive of her decision, as they had always respected her wishes. Barrie had always been vocal about her belief that medical aid in dying should be a basic human right.
Jane recalled, “For years and years, her whole life before she was ever sick with any illness, she always used to say, ‘When my time comes, I just want to take something and go to sleep.’” Barrie considered going to Vermont or Switzerland before New York passed its legislation.
On her final day, when Barrie started to feel physical pain, her family and medical team were able to organize everything for her at her Manhattan home. Barrie passed away with her daughter, Jane, son, Aaron Harnick, and son-in-law, Adam Freifeld, at her bedside. As she was drifting off to sleep, her family told her they loved her. Barrie’s last words were, “I love you too.”
“She had the most incredible life, she did everything she wanted to do, and she had the family she wanted,” Jane said. “It was 100 percent her decision, and we all supported it.” As her final wish, she asked the family to keep fighting for medical aid in dying — which Jane noted was perfect for a woman who had spent her life advocating for causes she believed in.
In her interview with People, Jane also said that Barrie wanted people to understand that it was acceptable to discuss and support medical aid in dying, even if they personally disagreed with the decision.
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Barrie had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer, but she had been suffering from a serious, incurable lung disease for over 10 years. In September 2014, Barrie publicly announced she had been diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
“I have a very full, active life, but what lies ahead is unknown and yet known at the same time. I am living full steam ahead and am now trying to help other people do the same.”
Although Barrie had lived with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis since 2014, her daughter reported that she had recently received a terminal cancer diagnosis. The available reports do not identify the specific type of cancer or establish whether IPF contributed to her terminal prognosis. Under New York's Medical Aid in Dying law, eligibility requires a medically confirmed terminal illness or condition expected to cause death within six months, whether or not treatment is provided.
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a chronic, progressive lung disease caused by the thickening and stiffening of the tissue around the air sacs in the lungs (alveoli). This causes scarring (fibrosis) of the lungs, which makes it harder for oxygen to get into the blood. Patients commonly experience shortness of breath (dyspnea), occasional chest pain, weight loss, and fainting spells.
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is caused by repeated damage to the alveolar epithelium. After damage occurs, fibroblasts start to proliferate and deposit excessive amounts of extracellular matrix proteins, mainly collagen.4 As the cause is unknown, there is no cure for the scarring, but there are medications available to slow the disease’s progression, including pirfenidone and nintedanib.6 Patients with chronic interstitial lung diseases such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis are at a higher risk of developing primary lung cancer and other terminal conditions.5
Barrie was able to pass away peacefully in her Manhattan apartment thanks to New York’s Medical Aid in Dying Act. The act was signed into law by Governor Kathy Hochul earlier this year and went into effect in August.
Governor Hochul signed the legislation on February 6, 2026. It officially took effect on August 5, 2026, making medical aid in dying available to eligible terminally ill New York residents. Barrie's death on October 28 occurred less than three months after the law came into effect.
“She was so grateful that it had been instituted in New York really in the nick of time,” Jane shared.
Medical aid in dying is available to adults who are of sound mind and have been diagnosed with a terminal illness with a prognosis of six months or less to live. They can request a prescription from their doctor for end-of-life medication.
Under New York's Public Health Law, Article 28-F, the patient must be at least 18 years old, reside in New York State, have an incurable and irreversible terminal illness or condition expected to cause death within six months, have decision-making capacity, make an informed and voluntary decision, and be capable of self-administering the prescribed medication.
In palliative care, medical aid in dying has been widely researched to understand why patients choose this option. Peer-reviewed research shows that the main reasons patients request medical aid in dying are loss of autonomy, an inability to do things they enjoy, and a desire for a dignified death. Physical pain is rarely the primary reason.1,3
New York's law also requires physicians to explain the potential risks and probable outcome of taking the prescribed medication, as well as available alternatives, including palliative care and hospice care. A patient may choose not to obtain the prescription or may decide not to take the medication even after obtaining it.
The law also specifies how deaths following medical aid in dying are documented. Under Section 2899-P of New York's Public Health Law, the underlying terminal illness or condition must be recorded as the cause of death on the death certificate when a qualified individual dies after self-administering the prescribed medication.
Barrie was very lucid in the last few weeks of her life. She was keeping up to date with the news, selecting music for her memorial, and working with her medical team when she started to feel pain. Research has shown that patients who utilize medical aid in dying overwhelmingly choose to do so at home while receiving hospice or palliative care with their family present. They also report feeling very prepared.1,2
New York's Medical Aid in Dying Act establishes several safeguards to ensure that the decision is informed, voluntary, and made by a patient with decision-making capacity.
The law requires the following:
Two physicians, an attending physician and a consulting physician, must confirm the patient's terminal diagnosis, prognosis, decision-making capacity, and voluntary decision.
The patient must make an oral request, which must be recorded using an audio or video device and stored in the medical record.
The patient must also submit a written request signed in the presence of two eligible adult witnesses.
A mental health professional must evaluate the patient and submit a written assessment of their decision-making capacity.
A five-day waiting period applies between the prescription being written and being filled. However, this period may be waived if the attending physician determines that the patient may die before the waiting period expires.
The attending physician must explain available treatment options, including hospice and palliative care, and offer the patient an opportunity to withdraw the request.
The patient must personally and voluntarily self-administer the medication. Another person cannot administer it on the patient's behalf under this law.
The law also restricts who can serve as witnesses. For example, a patient's relatives, individuals who stand to benefit financially from the patient's death, and certain people affiliated with the healthcare facility where the patient receives care are ineligible.
A patient can withdraw the request at any time, regardless of decision-making capacity. The law also prohibits eligibility based solely on age or disability.
These safeguards are intended to protect patients from coercion and ensure that the decision is based on their own informed wishes.
Medical aid in dying and euthanasia are not interchangeable terms. The distinction under New York's law is primarily based on who performs the final act.
In medical aid in dying, a physician prescribes medication that an eligible patient may voluntarily choose to self-administer. The patient, rather than the physician or another person, performs the final act.
Under New York's Medical Aid in Dying Act, healthcare professionals and family members cannot administer the prescribed medication to the patient on their behalf. This requirement for self-administration is a defining feature of the state's legal framework.
Barrie will be remembered for her campaigning for autonomy at the end of life, but also for her incredible career spanning over six decades. She was described by Playbill as “a consummate character actor, known for her sharp wit and clever ability to deliver even the most dexterous of lines with natural grace.”
Barrie was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1980 for playing Evelyn Stohler, the loving mother of a teenage bike racing champion (Golden Globe Nominee - Dennis Christopher), in Breaking Away (directed by Peter Yates, 1979). Earlier in her career, Barrie won Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival 1964 for her role in One Potato, Two Potato. She also played Goldie Hawn’s mother in Private Benjamin (1980), a magazine editor in The Bell Jar (1979) –the film adaptation of Sylvia Plath’s novel – and had a role in The Six Wives of Henry Lefay (2009).
On Broadway, Barrie was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for playing the fiery Sarah in Stephen Sondheim’s Company. She also appeared in The Selling of the President and The Prisoner of Second Avenue.
On television, Barrie was nominated for an Emmy after reprising her role as Evelyn Stohler in the short-lived Breaking Away (1980-1981) series on ABC and earned another Emmy nomination for her guest appearance in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Barrie was also very well known for playing Brooke Shields’ grandmother across all four seasons of Suddenly Susan (1996-2000). Additionally, she played Hal Linden’s wife, Elizabeth, mainly in the first season of Barney Miller. She also appeared in Pushing Daisies and Enlightened.
Barrie was preceded in death by her husband, the late artistic director and theater advocate Jay Harnick. She was survived by her daughter, Jane, her son, Aaron, and three granddaughters.
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References:
Emanuel, Ezekiel J., Bregje D. Onwuteaka-Philipsen, John W. Urwin, and Joachim Cohen. 2016. "Attitudes and Practices of Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide in the United States, Canada, and Europe." JAMA 316 (1): 79–90.
Ganzini, Linda, Elizabeth R. Goy, and Steven K. Dobscha. 2009. "Oregonians' Reasons for Requesting Physician Aid in Dying." Archives of Internal Medicine 169 (5): 489–92. https://doi.org/10.1001/archinternmed.2008.579.
Kozlov, Elissa, Molly Nowels, Michael Gusmano, Muhammed Habib, and Paul Duberstein. 2022. "Aggregating 23 Years of Data on Medical Aid in Dying in the United States." Journal of the American Geriatrics Society 70 (10): 3040–44.
Lederer, David J., and Fernando J. Martinez. 2018. "Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis." New England Journal of Medicine 378 (19): 1811–23.
Naccache, Jean-Marc, Quentin Gibiot, Isabelle Monnet, Martine Antoine, Marie Wislez, Christos Chouaid, and Jacques Cadranel. 2018. "Lung Cancer and Interstitial Lung Disease: A Literature Review." Journal of Thoracic Disease 10 (6): 3829–44. https://doi.org/10.21037/jtd.2018.05.75.
Raghu, Ganesh, Martine Remy-Jardin, Luca Richeldi, Carey C. Thomson, Yoshikazu Inoue, Takeshi Johkoh, Michael Kreuter, et al. 2022. "Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (an Update) and Progressive Pulmonary Fibrosis in Adults: An Official ATS/ERS/JRS/ALAT Clinical Practice Guideline." American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine 205 (9): e18–e47.
New York State Department of Health. “Medical Aid in Dying Law Frequently Asked Questions.” Accessed November 5, 2026. https://www.health.ny.gov/health_care/medical_aid_in_dying/faqs.htm
New York State Department of Health. “New York State Department of Health Announces Historic Medical Aid in Dying Law Takes Effect in New York State.” August 5, 2026. https://healthweb-back.health.ny.gov/press/releases/2026/2026-08-05_medical_aid_in_dying_law.htm.
New York State Senate. “Public Health Law, Article 28-F: Medical Aid in Dying.” Sections 2899-D–2899-S. https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PBH/A28-F.
(Rh/APC/MSM)
