Impact of the Cruzan Case on Medical Practice

Abstract

Just over a year has elapsed since the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in Cruzan. In the year prior to and since the decision there have been a substantial number of articles in the medical literature that have discussed the possible impacts of the decision on medical care along with suggestions as to how to avoid the more onerous consequences. These analyses are constrained by the lack of any direct measurements, an activity that is itself complicated by other events such as the publicity surrounding episodes of assisted suicide and so-called mercy killing. In this paper we will limit our focus to how the decision in Cruzan is likely to affect the doctor-patient relationship, especially in the critical activities surrounding decision-making about the use of life sustaining treatments.