travbowman asked
According to USA Today, Pope John Paul II recently declared that a feeding tube constitutes 'basic care' for an individual in a persistent vegetative state, and that removal of the tube is 'euthanasia by admission.' The declaration has taken the Catholic healthcare community by surprise, and likely will lead to amendment of policies governing end of life treatment in Catholic hospitals. Contrary to the Pope's declaration, artificial feeding and hydration have long been viewed by the medical profession and the courts as a form of medical treatment. The U.S. Supreme Court recognized (in the 1990 Cruzan decision) a constitutionally protected right to refuse lifesaving hydration and nutrition, and the right of a surrogate to refuse such medical treatment on behalf of an incompetent individual under certain circumstances...
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