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This site is dedicated to the memory of Raymond, our totally dependent son & brother, who was severely mentally handicapped and could not speak. Because of this he could not express his wishes regarding his health care; he was made to endure indescribable pain and suffering for months longer than he should have due to the lack of laws in New York State giving families the right to decide to withdraw health care treatment when there is no hope of recovery and a or health care proxy have not been appointed.
In July, 3 2007 Governor Spitzer signed into law the
Surrogate's Court Procedure Act (A3683A)This law provides for appointment of a person to make end-of-life decisions, for the mentally retarded only, when there is no court appointed guardian to do so. THANK YOU FOR YOU SUPPORT ON THIS IMPORTANT PIECE OF LEGISLATION.
***There is still much work to be done to give this same right to all incapacitated adults in New York State. Please continue on to the following pages of this site to see what you can do.***
PLEASE APPOINT A HEALTH CARE PROXY FOR YOURSELF IF YOU HAVEN'T DONE SO. A LINK TO DIRECTIONS AND A HEALTH CARE PROXY FORM ARE ON THE SUMMARY OF LAWS PAGE
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It is our mission to educate others regarding the current health care laws in New York State and to urge them to encourage the New York State legislature to act on the
Family Health Care Decisions Act (A06993 or S05522) In the 2007 legislative session the assembly and the senate have not taken action on this bill.
The lack of current laws giving families the right to make choices regarding withdrawal of life sustaining treatment when there is no hope of recovery causes undue suffering to patients and their families and unnecessary burden to the health care system.
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For Raymond, a sister's memoir, a book about Raymond's powerful story can be ordered through the links at the bottom of the following page. Just click on the tab for Ray's story in the upper left hand corner of this page to get there.
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Please send your comments and stories to
arayofhope@roadrunner.com.
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On November 17, 2007 an article about this book and the author's advocacy for the Family Health Care Decisions Act appeared in the
Tonawanda News
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