DiNino v. State

*328Brachtenbach, J.

In 1979, the Legislature enacted the Natural Death Act, RCW 70.122.010 et seq. (hereinafter cited as NDA). The NDA recognized that adult individuals have a fundamental right to make decisions concerning medical care, including the decision to forgo life-sustaining treatment if terminally ill. RCW 70.122.010. Accordingly, the act created a procedure whereby individuals could execute a directive which provides for the withholding or withdrawal of life-sustaining procedures when the individual is in a terminal condition. RCW 70.122.020.

The act defines "directive" as: "a written…