2019 Minnesota Statutes

145B.13 REASONABLE MEDICAL PRACTICE REQUIRED.

In reliance on a patient's living will, a decision to administer, withhold, or withdraw medical treatment after the patient has been diagnosed by the attending physician to be in a terminal condition must always be based on reasonable medical practice, including:

(1) continuation of appropriate care to maintain the patient's comfort, hygiene, and human dignity and to alleviate pain;

(2) oral administration of food or water to a patient who accepts it, except for clearly documented medical reasons; and

(3) in the case of a living will of a patient that the attending physician knows is pregnant, the living will must not be given effect as long as it is possible that the fetus could develop to the point of live birth with continued application of life-sustaining treatment.

History:

1989 c 3 s 13; 1991 c 148 s 6