Legal Definitions - right to die

The right to die refers to the right of a terminally ill person to refuse life-sustaining treatment. This is also known as the right to refuse treatment. For example, if a person is suffering from a terminal illness and is in a lot of pain, they may choose to stop receiving treatment that is only prolonging their suffering.

An advance directive is a legal document that takes effect when a person becomes incompetent and designates a surrogate decision-maker for healthcare matters. This document is often used to ensure that a person's wishes about medical treatment are respected if they become unable to communicate. For example, a person may specify in their advance directive that they do not want to be kept alive by artificial means if they are in a vegetative state.

A do-not-resuscitate order is a medical order that instructs healthcare providers not to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) if a person's heart stops or they stop breathing. This order is often used for people who are terminally ill and do not want to be resuscitated if their heart stops. For example, a person with a terminal illness may choose to have a do-not-resuscitate order in place to ensure that they are not kept alive artificially.