Maine § 1503-A. - Authority for consent by a surrogate

§ 1503-A.. Authority for consent by a surrogate

1.  Consent by a surrogate; notice of need for health care.  A surrogate may give consent for health care for a minor except that a surrogate may not withhold or withdraw life-sustaining treatment or deny surgery, procedures or other interventions that are life-saving and medically necessary. The existence of a surrogate does not affect the ability of a minor to give consent as otherwise provided by law. Before the surrogate may give consent, the surrogate must make a reasonable good faith attempt to inform the minor's parents or legal guardian of the minor's need for health care and the parents' right to make those decisions. If parental notification is not required by other provisions of law, the surrogate is not required to inform or attempt to inform the minor's parents or legal guardian.

2.  Notice of health care received.  Unless parental notification is not required by other provisions of law, a surrogate giving consent pursuant to subsection 1 shall make a reasonable good faith attempt to inform the minor's parents or legal guardian of the health care that the minor received. A health care practitioner or health care provider who provides health care pursuant to this section shall inform the minor's surrogate of this obligation. The sending of correspondence by regular mail, e-mail, texting, posting to a personal website or other written means of communication to the last known address or contacting by telephone using the last known telephone number of the minor's parents or legal guardian, whichever means the surrogate believes to be the most effective way to ensure actual notification, is deemed a reasonable good faith attempt to provide notice for purposes of this subsection.

3.  Penalties.  The following penalties apply to violations of this section.

A. A surrogate who makes decisions for a minor knowing that the decisions are prohibited by subsection 1 commits a Class E crime.   [PL 2015, c. 444, §2 (NEW).]

B. A person who knowingly acts as a surrogate for a minor without meeting the definition of "surrogate" in section 1501, subsection 4 commits a Class E crime.   [PL 2015, c. 444, §2 (NEW).]

C. A surrogate who fails to attempt to give notice as required in subsection 1 or 2 commits a Class E crime.   [PL 2015, c. 444, §2 (NEW).]