Advance Directive

Advanced Directives

Lynne and I are going to Austin next week for Catholic Advocacy Day. We will put on t-shirts and call on legislators to support the legislative agenda for the Texas Catholic Conference. I hesitate to say we will be lobbying. We haven't registered anywhere and will certainly not be paid.

Two of the items we will be supporting are Senate Bill 303 and its companion HB 1444. They have to do with advance directives, end of life care and the wishes of the patient, his or her surrogate, and the conscience of medical providers. This is not trivial stuff. These bills cut to the heart of one of the great moral issues of our day. When do we pull the plug and who decides? Who gets notified and when? What happens when doctor and family disagree? Who speaks for the incapacitated patient when no next of kin can be found?

It helps of course if the patient has a living will. Lynne and I have had them for years. But even then the questions can get sticky. Just when are "extraordinary measures" not worth the likely medical benefit? The issue is easily demagogued and it is no surprise that critics are out there but the criticism is not well founded. The people providing end of life care need to operate within a well understood legal framework. Current law has proved inadequate.

The two bills are not products of a well funded lobbying effort by rent seekers. I don't see that anyone involved has much economic interest. It isn't just a Catholic issue. The Texas Medical Association, the Texas Hospital Association, Texas Alliance for Life, and the Christian Life Commission - Texas Baptists all actively support these bills. The National  Catholic Bioethics Center has weighed in for them. The National Right to Life Committee opposes them but the ethical grounding in support is serious and solid.

The advanced directives bills are a priority but they aren't the only ones we will be advocating for. We won't get everything we want. If we had our way we would abolish the death penalty. Texas isn't ready for that so we will take what we can get. We will support bills that make it less likely the death penalty will be used. HB 166 would establish a Texas Innocence Commission to investigate and help prevent wrongful convictions. What's not to like about that?

We will also be arguing for regulation of payday lenders, continued in state college tuition for Texas residents regardless of immigration status, and a school breakfast program for needy children. We'll oppose bills that would allow embryonic stem cell research, same sex marriage, and legalized gambling. TCC has taken positions on dozens of bills, too many to cover in a few brief visits with law makers. They have listed them all on their web site along with summaries and the reason they are for or against. TCC will provide us with talking points on the issues they would like us to cover in our meetings.

I don't always agree with TCC but I do most of the time. This will be Catholic Advocacy Day so on those few issues where I have misgivings I will hold my tongue. TCC is on record with every position they take and I can speak to that.

All in all it should be a long and fruitful day. It's little enough to devote one day and a few hours preparation every other year to a worthy cause. And it's a great lesson in civics for Lynne and me.