Bioethics in 2017

by Wesley J. Smith

Here are five bioethical issues that have the potential to explode into controversy. Continue Reading »

6 Jan 2017

“Death Control” and the Bioethics Peril

by Wesley J. Smith

Thousands of medical ethicists and bioethicists, as they are called, professionally guide the unthinkable on its passage through the debatable on its way to becoming the justifiable until it is finally established as the unexceptionable. Continue Reading »

16 Sep 2016

Futile Care Dehydration Stopped in Alaska

by Wesley J. Smith

The Alliance Defense Fund, which helped save Jesse Ramirez’s life, has won another one, at least for now. From its press release: On May 16, the patient’s husband filed the suit P.C. v. K. against the hospital and a doctor in order to keep the medical staff from removing his wife’s . . . . Continue Reading »

11 Sep 2008

New York Doctor to testify in favor of Sustaining Life Support for Orthodox Jewish Man

by Wesley J. Smith

By Alex SchadenbergA neurologist from New York has agreed to testify as a medical expert on behalf of the family of Samuel Golubchuk an Orthodox Jewish man from Winnipeg Canada.Dr. Leon Zacharowicz agreed to work on the case pro-bono after being contacted by Agudath Israel of America. Dr. . . . . Continue Reading »

30 May 2008

Using the False Claim Act to Impose Futile Care Theory?

by Wesley J. Smith

Ah, the days when “choice” seemed to be the end all and be all of bioethics. You say you want your profoundly disabled spouse’s feeding tube pulled so he dies slowly by dehydration? Choice! You say you want assisted suicide? Choice! You say you want your life extended with . . . . Continue Reading »

15 May 2008

Death Pusher: Don’t Let Your Grandparents Near Peter Singer

by Wesley J. Smith

Peter Singer once again wants to shove human “non persons” out of the life boat. Not content with advocating infanticide, he also promotes futile care theory and suggests that patients with dementia be denied antibiotics and that other patients be denied life support based on . . . . Continue Reading »

20 Mar 2008

Medical Futility Blog: Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid

by Wesley J. Smith

I just learned about this blog, “Medical Futility,” that tracks futility care cases. The author is a law professor named Thaddeus Pope who, from what I have seen of his entries, clearly supports Futile Care Theory.In reading his entries, it validates my belief that the twin ideological . . . . Continue Reading »

19 Feb 2008

Doctors’ Values Are More Important Than Those of Their Patients

by Wesley J. Smith

I have been warning anyone who will listen about the coming huge policy fight over medical futility—what I call Futile Care Theory—that allows a doctor to refuse wanted life sustaining treatment when the doctor doesn’t believe that the quality of the patient’s life is worth . . . . Continue Reading »

31 Jan 2008

Imposing Futile Care Theory—Even When the Patient Improves

by Wesley J. Smith

I have been warning for years that Futile Care theorists were going to become increasingly bold in attempting to impose their quality of life judgments on unwilling patients and families. A very important futility case is ongoing right now in Winnipeg, Canada, in which a hospital insists that it has . . . . Continue Reading »

14 Jan 2008

Samuel Golubchuk’s Futile Care Case a Hard Sell With the Public

by Wesley J. Smith

The current Futile Care Theory fuss in Canada, in which a hospital wants to remove Samuel Golubchuk’s respirator and feeding tube because he is diagnosed as unconscious, seems to be playing out in the polls as favoring the family that wants their father’s life-sustaining treatment to . . . . Continue Reading »

13 Dec 2007