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Home » Consumer Information » Life Support

Uniform Rights of the Terminally Ill Act

Passed in 1985 and amended in 1989, the Uniform Rights of the Terminally Ill Act has been adopted by numerous states around the US. The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws is pushing for this legislation in every state of the Union. The law gives a medical patient permission to declare a living will, affirming that in the event that individual is on life support due to a terminal illness or coma, they have the right to end their life by discontinuing life support.

Likewise, the patient can be granted healthcare power of attorney, meaning they may designate an agent to decide whether they should be kept alive if it appears that they have reached a point of no return. In other words, if the patient is incapable of communicating their wishes, the person selected to make a decision for them will chose to sustain or shut down life support.

People frequently take advantage of this act to avoid the pain and suffering that comes with a deadly illness. It also enables them to save their loved ones from the grief associated with watching this person lie motionless in a vegetative state for months and even years.

This process of death is also referred to as passive euthanasia because drugs are not used to end the patient's life.

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