New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 17 - TREASURY - GENERAL › Chapter 41 - OFFICE OF THE OMBUDSPERSON FOR THE INSTITUTIONALIZED ELDERLY PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE RULES › Subchapter 2 - PROCEDURES REQUIRED PRIOR TO WITHHOLDING OR WITHDRAWING LIFE-SUSTAINING TREATMENT FROM ELDERLY, INSTITUTIONALIZED RESIDENTS › Section 17:41-2.3 - Duty to report

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) Any person
				who believes that withholding or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment from an
				elderly, incapacitated resident of a facility would effectuate the resident's
				wishes or would be in the resident's best interests shall notify the Office of
				the contemplated action.
(b) Any
				caregiver, social worker, physician, registered or licensed practical nurse,
				managed care organization representative, managed care organization care
				manager, or other professional who has reasonable cause to suspect that
				withholding or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment from an elderly,
				incapacitated resident of a facility would be an abuse of that resident shall
				report such information to the Office. The Office may be contacted by calling
				its toll-free telephone number (877-582-6995), 24 hours per day, any day of the
				year, or by writing to: The Office of the Ombudsperson for the
				Institutionalized Elderly, PO Box 852, Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0852. OOIE is
				not a first responder. Individuals that require immediate attention in an
				emergency should call 911.
(c) Any
				other person who has reasonable cause to suspect that withholding or
				withdrawing life-sustaining treatment from an elderly, incapacitated resident
				of a facility would be an abuse of the resident may report such information to
				the Office.
(d) The reporting
				procedures set forth in this section shall not apply when:
1. The resident is under age 60;
2. The resident, being fully informed and
				having the capacity to make a health care decision, chooses to withhold or
				withdraw life-sustaining treatment. Where there is any doubt whether the
				resident is fully informed, or regarding the resident's capacity to make a
				particular health care decision, two non-attending physicians shall make the
				determination of whether the resident is fully informed and has the capacity to
				make a particular health care decision. The physicians' determinations shall be
				based on the physicians' reasonable medical judgments and shall be documented
				on the resident's chart;
3. The
				resident has a fully executed and valid Advance Directive ("Living Will") under
				the provisions of
26:2H-53
,
				Proxy Directive ("Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care"), or Physician
				Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment under the provisions of
26:2H-129
et
				seq.;
4. The life-sustaining
				treatment is not medically indicated for the resident. The resident's attending
				physician or an advanced practice nurse in collaboration with the attending
				physician shall make this determination. Such determination shall be based on
				reasonable medical judgment and shall be documented on the resident's
				chart;
5. The proposal to withhold
				or withdraw life-sustaining treatment is being reviewed by, or has been
				reviewed favorably by, a court of competent jurisdiction; or
6. The proposal to withhold or withdraw
				life-sustaining treatment is being reviewed by, or has been reviewed by, a
				regional long term care ethics committee acting under the auspices of and with
				the approval of the Ombudsperson, and such committee has recommended in favor
				of the proposal and reported its recommendation to the Ombudsperson.