Public Health Department Wants To Make It
Easier to Withhold Life-Sustaining Treatment From Loved Ones
HB191 Sponsor: Rep. Ed Oliver
BILL DESCRIPTION: Under existing law, a surrogate may be designated to determine whether to provide, withdraw, or withhold life-sustaining treatment or artificially provided nutrition and hydration to a terminally ill patient if the patient has no advance directive for health care, provided the surrogate meets certain qualifications and certifies and attests to meeting the
qualifications. This bill would remove the requirement that a surrogate's certification be notarized.
EF POSITION: Two hospitals in the sponsor's district asked him to carry this bill. Their reasoning is that it is a burden for rural hospitals to have a notary public. Deciding that a family member should have life-sustsaining treatment withdrawn should not be "easy". Removing the notary public requirement opens the door to hospitals making end-of-life decisions for patients. The
attestation provides an independent third-party verification of the identity of the surrogate, thereby protecting both the hospital and the surrogate. We discovered that it only costs approximately $81.for a 4-year notary public license. Rural hospitals can easily have notaries available 24/7. Since July 2021 Alabama can utilize virtual notaries. We must protect patients and families. This bill could be voted on the House floor next week. EF's General Counsel Margaret Clarke wrote an excellent memo on the importance of protecting patients by stopping this bill.
The Alabama Parents' Choice Act
