Notice to Health Care Providers [on] Discriminating against the Handicapped by Withholding Treatment or Nourishment

Notice to Health Care Providers [on] Discriminating against the Handicapped by Withholding Treatment or Nourishment

Contributor(s):
United States. Department of Health and Human Services. Office for Civil Rights
Dotson, Betty Lou
Publication:
Produced: 18 May 1982
Language(s):
English
Format:
Text
Subject(s):
Disabled Children
Ethics, Medical
Refusal to Treat
Genre(s):
Archival Materials
Reports
Abstract:
In its initial response to the "Baby Doe" controversy triggered by the withholding of medical treatment from a severely disabled newborn in an Indiana hospital, and his resulting death, the Department of Health and Human Services warned that it would use existing legislation, namely the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, to prevent further deaths of this kind. Section 504 of the act prohibited as discriminatory the withholding of services, including medical services, from any person with a disability in facilities that received federal funding, among them hospitals. However, officials at the department, most of whom regarded themselves as allies of hospitals and of the medical profession, were deeply divided over the issue of intervening in the professional autonomy of physicians in making treatment decisions. As a result of such internal political and ethical conflicts, the department failed to bring any legal actions under the Rehabilitation Act against physicians who counseled parents to allow their disabled children to die, and new legislation had to be drafted to address the issue. In October 1984, federal child abuse was expanded to explicitly prohibit the withholding of fluids, nutrition, and medically indicated treatment from infants with severe birth defects.
Copyright:
The National Library of Medicine believes this item to be in the public domain. (More information)
Extent:
2 pages
NLM Unique ID:
101584930X688 (See in Profiles in Science)
Profiles in Science ID:
QQBCQM
Permanent Link:
http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/101584930X688
Archival Collection:
The C. Everett Koop Papers (Profiles in Science)