2011 Missouri Revised Statutes
TITLE XII PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
Chapter 190 Emergency Services
Section 190.615. Death of a patient, not suicide or homicide--effect of order on life insurance--order does not authorize mercy killing or euthanasia.

190.615. 1. A patient's death resulting from the withholding or withdrawal in good faith of cardiopulmonary resuscitation under an outside the hospital do-not-resuscitate order is not, for any purpose, a suicide or homicide.

2. The possession of an outside the hospital do-not-resuscitate identification or execution of an outside the hospital do-not-resuscitate order does not affect in any manner the sale, procurement, or issuance of any policy of life insurance, nor does it modify the terms of an existing policy of life insurance. Notwithstanding any term of a policy to the contrary, a policy of life insurance is not legally impaired or invalidated in any manner by the withholding or withdrawal of cardiopulmonary resuscitation from an insured patient possessing an outside the hospital do-not-resuscitate identification or outside the hospital do-not-resuscitate order.

3. A physician, health care facility, or other health care provider or a health care service plan, insurer issuing disability insurance, self-insured employee welfare benefit plan, or nonprofit hospital plan shall not require a patient to possess an outside the hospital do-not-resuscitate identification or execute an out of hospital do-not-resuscitate order as a condition for being insured for or receiving health care services.

4. Sections 190.600 to 190.621 do not prejudice any right that a patient has to effect the obtaining, withholding, or withdrawal of medical care in any lawful manner apart from sections 190.600 to 190.621. In that respect, the rights of patients authorized under sections 190.600 to 190.621 are cumulative.

5. The provisions of sections 190.600 to 190.621 shall not be construed to condone, authorize, or approve mercy killing or euthanasia, or to permit any affirmative or deliberate act or omission to shorten or end life.

(L. 2007 H.B. 182)

Annotation Copyright Missouri Joint Committee on Legislative Research