Please take Action on Advance Directives!

ACTION ALERT:

Please contact your Senator and Representative to SUPPORT SB 1944/HB 3099 which reform the Texas Advance Directives Act and OPPOSE SB 917/HB 2609 which eliminate the dispute resolution process. It takes less than 3 minutes to email your representative here. 

The Texas Advance Directives Act dispute resolution process protects patients and physicians by providing a fair and reasonable process to resolve intractable disagreements regarding end-of-life care decisions. The current law, however, could be improved by correcting deficiencies in several areas. For this reason, the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops and the Catholic Healthcare Association of Texas have sought reform of this act for more than a decade to better safeguard both the rights of patients and their families and the conscience rights of healthcare providers.

Support SB 1944 and HB 3099 which, among other reforms, establish ethics committee criteria, extend the number of days to transfer a patient to an alternate facility, and require the appointment of a liaison to assist the patient’s family throughout the process.

Oppose SB 917 and HB 2609 which eliminate the dispute resolution process and require indefinite medical interventions against a physician’s professional judgement. Forcing health care workers by law to administer interventions which require them to violate the dignity of the human person is cruel. It creates moral distress for healthcare providers who know the correct ethical and moral action but are prevented from taking it. In addition to opposing these bills, we urge legislators to oppose any amendment to others bills with the language in these bills.

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has said “Every medical action must always have as its object—intended by the moral agent—the promotion of life and never the pursuit of death. The physician is never a mere executor of the will of patients or their legal representatives, but retains the right and obligation to withdraw at will from any course of action contrary to the moral good discerned by conscience.”

Take action to protect the dignity and rights of patients and the conscience rights of healthcare providers.

Again, please use the OneClickPolitics tool in the link here to contact your Texas Representative. Thanks for your advocacy to promote common sense gun regulations!

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The TCCB is a federation of all Roman Catholic dioceses in Texas.