3 Jun 2025

Women and Doctors Sue Kansas for Invalidating End-of-Life Care Decisions for Pregnant Patients

by Bonnie | | 0

Three women, one of them pregnant, and two doctors filed a lawsuit against the state of Kansas over its law nullifying decisions about end-of-life care when the patient is pregnant.

Each state has laws that allow people to establish advance directive to guide medical care decisions when they are unable to make such decisions any more. Most states limit options about medical care for pregnant patients. Kansas is uncommonly restrictive, invalidating advance directives for pregnant patients without regard to how far along the fetus is and whether it has any chance of survival at the time.

The women filing the lawsuit are Emma Vernon, Abigail Ottaway and Laura Stratton. They assert this violates the rights of pregnant people to equal protection under the Kansas Constitution and to personal autonomy.

The doctors involved in the lawsuit are Michele Bennett and Lynley Holman. They assert lack of clarity in the law exposes them to civil and criminal liabilities, and unsure what treatment they are allowed or required to provide.

Restrictions on advance directives for end-of-life care have become a hot issue in light of a brain-dead pregnant woman in Georgia who is being kept on life support, with her family forced to shoulder the costs, because of Georgia’s abortion ban.

Click here for more details.

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