Utah's Personal Choice and Living Will Act
Enacted by Chapter 150, 1975 General Session
5-2-1101. Short title. This part is known as the "Personal Choice and Living Will Act."
75-2-1102. Intent statement.
(1) The Legislature finds:
(a) developments in medical technology make possible many alternatives for treating medical conditions and make possible the unnatural prolongation of death;
(b) persons should have the clear legal choice to be spared unwanted life-sustaining procedures, and be permitted to die with a maximum of dignity and a minimum of pain; and
(c) considerable uncertainty exists in the medical and legal professions as to the legality of terminating the use or application of life-sustaining procedures, even when a person has evidenced a desire that the procedures be withheld or withdrawn.
(2) In recognition of the dignity and privacy which all persons are entitled to expect, and to protect the right of individuals to refuse to be touched or treated in any manner without their willing consent, the Legislature declares that this state recognizes the right to make binding written directives instructing physicians and other providers of medical services to withhold or withdraw, or to provide only to the extent set forth in a directive, life-sustaining and other medical procedures.
75-2-1103. Definitions. As used in this part:
(1) "Agent" means any director, officer, employee, or other person authorized to act on behalf of a provider of medical services.
(2) "Artificial nutrition and hydration" means supplying food and water through a conduit such as a tube or intravenous line, where the recipient is not required to chew or swallow voluntarily, including nasogastric tubes, gastrostomies, jejunostomies, and intravenous infusions. Artificial nutrition and hydration does not include assisted feeding, such as spoon or bottle feeding.
(3)"Attending physician" means the physician selected by or assigned to a person, who has primary responsibility for the treatment and care of the person.
(4) "Declarant" means a person 18 years of age or older who has signed or directed the signing of any directive, or for whom a directive has been signed under this part.
(5) "Directive"means a written document voluntarily executed by or on behalf of a person in accordance with the requirements of this part.
(6) "In writing"means any printed or hand-written directive.
(7) (a) "Life-sustaining procedure" means: (i) any medical procedure or intervention which would in the judgment of the attending physician serve only to prolong the dying process; and (ii) artificial nutrition and hydration unless the declarant elects in the declaration to exclude artificially administered nutrition and hydration.
(b) Life-sustaining procedure does not include the administration of medication or the performance of any medical procedure which is intended to provide comfort care or to alleviate pain.
(8) "Persistent vegetative state" means a state of severe mental impairment, in which only involuntary bodily functions are present and the person totally lacks higher cortical and cognitive function but maintains vegetative brain stem processes for which there exists no reasonable expectation of regaining significant cognitive function as diagnosed by two physicians, one of whom shall be the attending physician, in accordance with reasonable medical judgment.
(9) "Provider of medical services" includes all persons licensed to provide medical services and all health care facilities, including hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, home health agencies, hospices, skilled nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities, intermediate care facilities for the mentally retarded, residential health care facilities, and facilities owned or operated by health maintenance organizations.
(10) "Terminal condition" means a condition caused by injury, disease, or illness, which regardless of the application of life-sustaining procedures, would within reasonable medical judgment produce death, and where the application of life-sustaining procedures serve only to postpone the moment of death of the person.
Amended by Chapter 129, 1993 General Session
