Washington D.C., Nov 6, 2009 / 14:58 pm
During their Nov. 16-19 general assembly, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops will vote on the moral obligation to provide medically assisted nutrition and hydration to patients in a persistent vegetative state.
The vote will take place in Baltimore at the bishops' semi-annual plenary meeting.
The document up for consideration will be a proposed revision of the "Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care." The reworked directives state more definitively what the moral obligation is regarding medically assisted nutrition and hydration.
The current directive, issued in 2001, states that “there should be a presumption in favor in providing nutrition and hydration to all patients, including patients who require medically assisted nutrition and hydration, as long as this is of sufficient benefit to outweigh the burdens involved to the patient.”