Providing nutrition and hydration for a comatose patient is "an ordinary and proportionate means of preserving life," and is therefore "obligatory" in most circumstances, the Vatican has stated.
In a document released on September 14, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) responded to questions that had been submitted by the US bishops' conference, regarding care for patients living in a "vegetative state." Because the moral principles involved are widely applicable, the full text of the CDF response, which was approved by Pope Benedict XVI, has been posted on the Vatican web site, with translations available in several languages.
The Vatican statement is an official response to moral questions that have arisen in several high-profile medical cases, such as the case of Terri Schiavo. The CDF clearly sides with those who argued that nutrition and hydration (food and water) should not have been withdrawn from the comatose woman in that case.
CWNews.com
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