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April 11, 1986, Vol 255, No. 14 >
ARTICLE | April 11, 1986

The 'Baby Doe' Rule FREE

David K. Stevenson, MD; Ronald L. Ariagno, MD; Jean S. Kutner; Thomas A. Raffin, MD; Ernle W. D. Young, PhD
[+] Author Affiliations

Reprint requests to Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305 (Dr Stevenson).


JAMA. 1986;255(14):1909-1912. doi:10.1001/jama.1986.03370140107033
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References

ON APRIL 9, 1982, "Baby Doe" was born in Bloomington, Ind. The series of events that followed, culminating in the "Baby Doe" rule, and their effects have been chronicled previously1,2 and are summarized in the Table. The final version of the Baby Doe rule,3 which was published Jan 12, 1984, and became effective Feb 13, 1984, reflects the history of emphasis on infants with severe congenital defects. The exceptions specified in the April 15, 1985, Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention and Treatment Program final rule also reflect the history of emphasis on easily identifiable conditions with predictable disabilities.4 They appear to be adequate for selecting appropriate treatment options for certain infants such as an anencephalic fetus, for whom all treatment would be expected to be futile, or the infant with Down's syndrome with only duodenal atresia, for whom surgical treatment would clearly be a benefit. However, the

REFERENCES

1 +
Weir RF:  Sounding board: The government and selective nontreatment of handicapped infants . N Engl J Med 1983;;309:661-663.
2 +
Shapiro DL, Rosenberg P:  The effect of federal regulations regarding handicapped newborns: A case report . JAMA 1984;;252:2031-2033.
3 +
Federal Register 1984;;49:1622-1654.
4 +
Federal Register 1985;;50:14878-14901.
5 +
Lee K, Paneth N, Gartner LM, et al:  Neonatal mortality: An analysis of the recent improvement in the United States . Am J Public Health 1980;;70:15-21.
6 +
Britton SB, Chir B, Fitzhardinge PM, et al:  Is intensive care justified for infants weighing less than 801 gm at birth? J Pediatr 1981;; 99:937-943.
7 +
Cohen RS, Stevenson DK, Ariagno RL, et al:  The survival and morbidity of our smallest babies: Is there a limit to neonatal care? Pediatrics 1984;;73:415-416.
8 +
Singer P:  Sanctity of life or quality of life? Pediatrics 1983;;72:128-129.
9 +
Cassel EJ:  The nature of suffering and the goals of medicine . N Engl J Med 1982;;306: 639-645.
10 +
Fost N:  Putting hospitals on notice . Hastings Cent Rep 1982;;12:5-8.
11 +
President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research: Deciding to Forego Life-Sustaining Treatment: Ethical, Medical and Legal Issues in Treatment Decisions. US Government Printing Office, 1983.
12 +
Angell M:  Handicapped children: Baby Doe and Uncle Sam . N Engl J Med 1983;; 309:659-661.

Figures

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Country-Specific Mortality and Growth Failure in Infancy and Yound Children and Association With Material Stature

Use interactive graphics and maps to view and sort country-specific infant and early dhildhood mortality and growth failure data and their association with maternal

1 +
Weir RF:  Sounding board: The government and selective nontreatment of handicapped infants . N Engl J Med 1983;;309:661-663.
2 +
Shapiro DL, Rosenberg P:  The effect of federal regulations regarding handicapped newborns: A case report . JAMA 1984;;252:2031-2033.
3 +
Federal Register 1984;;49:1622-1654.
4 +
Federal Register 1985;;50:14878-14901.
5 +
Lee K, Paneth N, Gartner LM, et al:  Neonatal mortality: An analysis of the recent improvement in the United States . Am J Public Health 1980;;70:15-21.
6 +
Britton SB, Chir B, Fitzhardinge PM, et al:  Is intensive care justified for infants weighing less than 801 gm at birth? J Pediatr 1981;; 99:937-943.
7 +
Cohen RS, Stevenson DK, Ariagno RL, et al:  The survival and morbidity of our smallest babies: Is there a limit to neonatal care? Pediatrics 1984;;73:415-416.
8 +
Singer P:  Sanctity of life or quality of life? Pediatrics 1983;;72:128-129.
9 +
Cassel EJ:  The nature of suffering and the goals of medicine . N Engl J Med 1982;;306: 639-645.
10 +
Fost N:  Putting hospitals on notice . Hastings Cent Rep 1982;;12:5-8.
11 +
President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research: Deciding to Forego Life-Sustaining Treatment: Ethical, Medical and Legal Issues in Treatment Decisions. US Government Printing Office, 1983.
12 +
Angell M:  Handicapped children: Baby Doe and Uncle Sam . N Engl J Med 1983;; 309:659-661.

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