Leaked papers spark right-to-life row
Doctors have intervened in a right-to-life row following the suggestion some hospital patients should be allowed to die because it costs too much to keep them alive.
The Daily Mail claims leaked Government papers suggest patients should be denied food and liquid if they fall into a coma or are too ill to speak for themselves.
The Government refused to comment on the reports.
A Department of Health spokeswoman told the Press Association: “I can tell you it is a leaked document. We are not saying anything further.”
The British Medical Association said it would be “quite wrong” to withdraw food and water from patients on the basis of financial considerations.
“It would be quite wrong to make a life or death decision based on the cost of treatment,” said a BMA spokeswoman.
The BMA also criticised the Department of Health for seeking clarification on a right-to-life ruling made by High Court judges last July.
The medical organisation says the ruling clearly states patients should make their own decisions about whether to accept food and water, if competent.
Judges also ruled the courts should have the final decision in cases where patients are unable to make a decision because they are unconscious or incompetent, or have not given prior notice of their wishes.
Dismissing suggestions the Government was seeking to challenge the judgement, Health Minister Rosie Winterton said: “It is not true that we are refuting the judgment on artificial nutrition and hydration made last July.”
“But we felt that the judgment went beyond artificial nutrition and hydration and has left it open-ended.
“We are therefore seeking clarification otherwise doctors would have to return to court every time a case like this arose,” she added.
The BMA maintains the law is clear.
“People have the right to die if that is what they wish but even then doctors could persuade them to have some treatment to relieve symptoms,” said the BMA spokeswoman.
