Opinion ID: 1143517
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: State Constitutional Right

Text: Some state courts have held that the right to refuse medical treatment is also a state constitutional right. [10] We hold that the Arizona Constitution also provides for a right to refuse medical treatment. Unlike the federal constitution, the Arizona Constitution expressly provides for a right to privacy. Article 2 of the Arizona Constitution provides: § 8. Right to privacy Section 8. No person shall be disturbed in his private affairs, or his home invaded, without authority of law. Although Arizona Constitution article 2, § 8 has been invoked most often in a Fourth Amendment context, we see no reason not to interpret privacy or private affairs as encompassing an individual's right to refuse medical treatment. An individual's right to chart his or her own plan of medical treatment deserves as much, if not more, constitutionally-protected privacy than does an individual's home or automobile.