Delaware Gov. John Carney has vetoed a bill aimed at making assisted suicide available in the state.

Delaware is a reliably Democrat state which President Joe Biden represented for decades.

“Although I understand not everyone shares my views, I am fundamentally and morally opposed to state law enabling someone, even under tragic and painful circumstances, to take their own life,” Carney, a Democrat, said in a statement.

“Last year, the American Medical Association reaffirmed its view that physician-assisted suicide is ‘fundamentally incompatible with a physician’s role as healer.’”

House Bill 140 would have allowed terminally ill Delaware residents to end their own lives with the help of a medical professional.

A similar proposal was defeated in the neighbouring Democrat-controlled state of Maryland earlier this year. Other Democrat-run states such as California and Oregon permit assisted suicide.