New Jersey needs independent panel to resolve disputes over end-of-life care

May 12, 2010

Ruben Betancourt, 73, lay in a persistent vegetative state for nearly a year at Trinitas Medical Center in Elizabeth. He was hooked up to a ventilator, dialysis machine and feeding tube. Doctors concluded there was no hope of recovery and further treatment would be futile, but Betancourt’s daughter did not agree. Against her wishes, the hospital placed a “do not resuscitate” sign on his bed and halted dialysis. The daughter went to court, and a judge ordered treatment resumed. (NJ.com)