Brain-dead pregnant woman taken off life support
Print Edition
A very public battle over the fate of a brain-dead, pregnant Texas woman and her fetus has ended quietly and privately, as she has been taken off life support and her family prepares for her burial.
John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth on Sunday complied with a judge’s order to pull any life-sustaining treatment from Marlise Munoz — who was declared brain-dead in November, shortly after her husband found her unconscious at home — but kept on machines for the sake of her fetus, now at 23 weeks’ gestation.
The woman was removed from the machines shortly after and allowed to die.
The hospital’s decision brought an apparent end to a case that inspired debates about abortion and end-of-life decisions, as well as whether a pregnant woman who is considered legally and medically dead should be kept on life support for the sake of a fetus, as per Texas law. Anti-abortion activists attended Friday’s court hearing and spoke out in favor of trying to deliver the fetus.
Whether the case leads Texas to change the law remains unclear. In recent years, it has enacted several anti-abortion restrictions, including setting the legal guideline for when a fetus can feel pain at 20 weeks — a milestone Munoz’s fetus passed about three weeks ago.
The woman’s husband, Erick Munoz, sued the hospital because it would not remove life support, which he said she would have wanted in such a situation. The couple, both paramedics, was familiar with end-of-life issues, and the husband said his wife had told him she would not want to be kept alive under such circumstances.
But the hospital refused his request, citing Texas law that says life-sustaining treatment cannot be withdrawn from a pregnant patient, regardless of her end-of-life wishes.
Judge RH Wallace on Friday sided with Munoz, saying in his order, “Mrs Munoz is dead.”
Munoz found his wife unconscious in their home on November 26, possibly due to a blood clot. Doctors soon determined that she was brain-dead, which meant that she was both medically and legally dead by law, but kept her on machines to keep her organs functioning for the sake of the fetus.
After the hospital announced its decision not to fight the judge’s order, attorneys said Munoz had been disconnected from life support about 11:30am on Sunday.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
