Public to comment on controversial ‘right to die’ bill
Public only has until 22 August to comment.
The public will have only until 22 August to comment on a controversial bill, the draft National Health Amendment Bill 2018, that was gazetted on July 24.
The bill was drafted and tabled by Congress of the People MP Deidre Carter in conjunction with the advocacy group Dignity SA.
In an earlier statement Carter summarised the bill as follows:
“Here’s what the bill aims to do:
• Provide for and clarify the legal status of two types of advanced health care directives, namely, a “living will” and a “durable power of attorney for healthcare”;
• Set out the purpose, scope and format for these advance health care directives and provide for the resolution of disputes related to these directives;
• Clarify whether a “living will” or a substitute decision-maker’s decision may be overridden by a medical practitioner or family members in any circumstances; and
• Clarify whether someone acting upon these directives is immune from criminal and civil prosecutions.
“The draft bill is expected to clarify the legal status of living wills.
“Living wills, also known as advanced directives, are legal documents that allow individuals to state their decisions about end-of-life care ahead of time.
“The bill will spell out the legal status of durable power of attorney for healthcare, where a patient gives another person the power to make decisions on his or her behalf.
“In 1999, the SA Law Commission made recommendations for draft legislation that addresses living wills, pain management that may hasten death, the refusal of life support and assisted suicide.
“The [current] draft legislation, however, does not deal with the question of active euthanasia or assisted dying.
“Legal certainty is needed in order to prevent a patient’s wishes from being ignored by family members or medical practitioners.”
In his statement, Dignity SA’s Willie Landman said, “The Draft Bill is long overdue. In the late 1990s, President Mandela instructed the South African Law [Reform] Commission (SALC) to investigate and make law reform recommendations regarding end-of-life decision-making in all its forms. Among others, the SALC’s second or final report (1999) proposed that advance directives (a living will and a durable power of attorney for healthcare) be legalised.
“For almost 20 years, Parliament failed to follow these recommendations despite advance directives being a legal instrument in many other jurisdictions, and despite medical decisions regarding withholding and withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment having to be made in conditions of uncertainty regarding criminal and civil liability. (Life-sustaining treatment would include a range of treatments, such as antibiotics, IV-tube feeding, dialysis or surgery.)
“Quite simply, in carefully prescribed circumstances, South Africans’ right to make decisions about their own continued life should be explicitly and unambiguously recognised in law by affirming the legal status and force of advance directives.”
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To officially send your comment on this issue to the designated government representative, go to Dear South Africa’s web page (https://dearsouthafrica.co.za/dignity/).
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