Judicial reasoning in termination of treatment decisions has neglected valid state interests in the preservation of life and the ethical integrity of medicine. Courts must balance these interests against individual liberty, ...

Practices considered controversial only a few years ago -- including DNR orders, withdrawal of nutrition and hydration from hopelessly ill or comatose patients, and the rights of patients to make health care decisions ...

This paper is a reply to proposals to base priority health-care decisions on public opinion surveys. Whilst it is recognised that current practice is less than satisfactory, it is argued here that basing health-care priorities ...

The authors explore the question of how the right of patients to refuse life-sustaining treatment can be reconciled with a hospital's or nursing home's differing philosophy of care. They review three recent court cases ...

Continuing a dialogue begun in an earlier issue of the

Veatch considers the pluralistic casuistry theory advocated by Baruch Brody in his 1988 book,