Have any courts upheld the validity of psychiatric advance directives?
Permitting people who are not mentally ill to engage in advance planning through advance directive instruments on a wider basis than people with mental illnesses raises significant issues. To date one federal court has addressed such an issue. A Vermont law allows doctors to go to court to nullify mental health provisions in a durable power of attorney/advance directive if the treatment choices made by the agent do not result in improvement of the declarant’s condition. In October 2001, a federal Magistrate Judge ruled that this provision is discriminatory and violates the Americans with Disabilities Act. The decision is Hargrave v. State of Vermont, No. 2:99-CV-128 (D. Vt. Oct. 11, 2001). See a PDF file of the decision. You will need the free Acrobat Reader to view and print these files. The plaintiff, Nancy Hargrave, had been diagnosed with a serious mental illness. She was involuntarily medicated, in direct contravention of her wishes expressly stated in her Durable Power of Attorne
Permitting people who are not mentally ill to engage in advance planning through advance directive instruments on a wider basis than people with mental illnesses raises significant issues. To date one federal court has addressed such an issue. A Vermont law allows doctors to go to court to nullify mental health provisions in a durable power of attorney/advance directive if the treatment choices made by the agent do not result in improvement of the declarant’s condition. In October 2001, a federal Magistrate Judge ruled that this provision is discriminatory and violates the Americans with Disabilities Act. The decision is Hargrave v. State of Vermont, 340 F.3d 27 (2d Cir 2003). Also available is a brief of 18 former state mental health commissioners, the National Mental Health Association, and other as amici curiae in support of the appellees in Hargrave. The plaintiff, Nancy Hargrave, had been diagnosed with a serious mental illness. She was involuntarily medicated, in direct contraven
