Abstract
Elizabeth Bouvia, a quadriplegic victim of cerebral palsy, sued Riverside Hospital in California two years ago for the right to refuse feeding via a nasogastric tube. Bouvia fled to Mexico when she lost the case, but later returned to California and again sought hospital care without force feedings, though this time she agreed to eat voluntarily. In September 1985 she was transferred from Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center to High Desert Hospital, which instituted a policy of force feeding Bouvia until she reached her "ideal weight." Bouvia sought a restraining order to remove the nasogastric tube, a request that was rejected in Bouvia v. Glenchur (L.A. Superior Court, C583828, 21 Feb 1986). Annas accuses High Desert Hospital and the judge in Glenchur of highhandedly denying Bouvia the right to refuse coercive treatment.
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