Abstract
Preliminary findings on the effects of the Massachusetts ruling in Rogers v. Commissioner, an important right to refuse treatment case, are compared with models in other jurisdictions. In sum, few cases are reviewed; in almost all reviewed, the court overrides the patients' refusal. The case raises troubling implications about due process and quality of care.
Footnotes
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Program in Psychiatry and the Law, Massachusetts Mental Health Center, 74 Fenwood Rd., Boston, MA 02115. Address reprint requests to Dr. Hoge, Forensic Evaluation Clinic, Department of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical Center, Worcester, MA 01605. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 1985 AAPL meeting, Albuquerque. The authors acknowledge their indebtedness to Leslie M. Levi for assistance in the preparation of this manuscript.
- Copyright © 1986, The American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law
