Betancourt v. Trinitas Hospital (NJ Super., App. Div. 2010)
Aug 13, 2010OUTCOME: Published opinion, New Jersey Appellate Division
This Court strongly questioned the adversary doctors' contention that they have a right to terminate life-sustaining medical treatment (in this case, dialysis of a man with brain damage) against the wi ... shes of a patient or the patient's surrogate medical decisionmaker, on the grounds that the treatment is futile because the patient cannot be cured. The doctors and hospital claimed incorrectly that our Supreme Court had never addressed this issue. As I argued on April 27, 2010, before the Appellate Division, the NJ Supreme Court has in fact addressed the issue, in the "right-to-die" context, and has resolved the issue in favor of the patient. The organizations I represented in this case were heard as amici curiae. They advocate on behalf of the rights of disabled people to self-determination, among other concerns. http://notdeadyetnewscommentary.blogspot.com/search?q=betancourt
