But critics say it’s a disturbing effort to allow withdrawal of basic sustenance from the most vulnerable in society.
“I think oral feeding is basic care,” said Richard Doerflinger, an associate scholar with the Charlotte Lozier Institute, which opposes abortion and euthanasia. “It’s what they want here and now that matters. If they start taking food, you give them food.”
Advance directives are legally recognized documents that specify care if a person is incapacitated. They can confirm that a patient doesn’t want to be resuscitated or kept on life support, such as a ventilator or feeding tube, if they have a terminal condition from which they’re not likely to recover.
However, the documents typically say nothing about withdrawing hand-feeding of food or fluids.