Iowa Code » Chapter 144A — LIFE-SUSTAINING PROCEDURES
Iowa Code

Iowa Code § 144A.2 (2026)

Definitions

✓ current as of July 2026
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Except as otherwise provided, as used in this chapter:

1. “Adult” means an individual eighteen years of age or older.

2. “Attending physician” means the physician selected by, or assigned to, the patient who has primary responsibility for the treatment and care of the patient.

3. “Attending physician assistant” means the physician assistant selected by, or assigned to, the patient who has primary responsibility for the treatment and care of the patient.

4. “Declaration” means a document executed in accordance with the requirements of section 144A.3.

5. “Department” means the department of health and human services.

6. “Emergency medical care provider” means emergency medical care provider as defined in section 147A.1.

7. “Health care provider” means a person, including an emergency medical care provider, who is licensed, certified, or otherwise authorized or permitted by the law of this state to administer health care in the ordinary course of business or in the practice of a profession.

8. “Hospital” means hospital as defined in section 135B.1.

9. a. “Life-sustaining procedure” means any medical procedure, treatment, or intervention, including resuscitation, which meets both of the following requirements:

(1) Utilizes mechanical or artificial means to sustain, restore, or supplant a spontaneous vital function.

(2) When applied to a patient in a terminal condition, would serve only to prolong the dying process.

b. “Life-sustaining procedure” does not include the provision of nutrition or hydration except when required to be provided parenterally or through intubation, or the administration of medication or performance of any medical procedure deemed necessary to provide comfort care or to alleviate pain.

10. “Out-of-hospital do-not-resuscitate order” means a written order signed by a physician, executed in accordance with the requirements of section 144A.7A and issued consistent with this chapter, that directs the withholding or withdrawal of resuscitation when an adult patient in a terminal condition is outside the hospital.

11. “Physician” means a person licensed to practice medicine and surgery or osteopathic medicine and surgery in this state.

12. “Physician assistant” means a person licensed to practice as a physician assistant in this state.

13. “Qualified patient” means a patient who has executed a declaration or an\n\nTue Dec 09 22:26:30 2025 Iowa Code 2026, Chapter 144A (27, 0) §144A.2, LIFE-SUSTAINING PROCEDURES 2\n\nout-of-hospital do-not-resuscitate order in accordance with this chapter and who has been determined by the attending physician to be in a terminal condition.

14. “Resuscitation” means any medical intervention that utilizes mechanical or artificial means to sustain, restore, or supplant a spontaneous vital function, including but not limited to chest compression, defibrillation, intubation, and emergency drugs intended to alter cardiac function or otherwise to sustain life.

15. “Terminal condition” means an incurable or irreversible condition that, without the administration of life-sustaining procedures, will, in the opinion of the attending physician, result in death within a relatively short period of time or a state of permanent unconsciousness from which, to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, there can be no recovery. 85 Acts, ch 3, §3; 92 Acts, ch 1132, §1 – 3; 2002 Acts, ch 1061, §1; 2008 Acts, ch 1088, §141; 2013 Acts, ch 30, §37; 2014 Acts, ch 1092, §32; 2022 Acts, ch 1066, §12; 2023 Acts, ch 19, §258 Referred to in §144C.2, 144D.4, 144G.1, 232D.401 \n

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 3 cases, 1994–2019 · leading case: State v. Murray, 512 N.W.2d 547 (Iowa 1994).
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State v. Murray, 512 N.W.2d 547 (Iowa 1994). · cites it 2× “Murray urges that there is no case law or statutory support in Iowa for the decision to discontinue nutrition and medication to a living patient. He contends that, because no one had the authority to discontinue medication and nutrition under either Iowa Code section 235B.”
Compassion in Dying v. Washington, 79 F.3d 790 (9th Cir. 1996). · cites it 2× “1992); Iowa Code Ann. § 144A.2(7) (West 1989 & Supp.”
Benjamin Schreiber v. Nick Ludwick (8th Cir. 2019). “Schreiber argues the district court erred in dismissing his claims against the hospital defendants because he was entitled to discovery to determine whether they violated his “do not resuscitate” rights under Iowa Code Ann. §§ 144A.2(13), 144A.3(1), and 144B.”
— Iowa Code § 144A.2(13) — 1 case
Benjamin Schreiber v. Nick Ludwick (8th Cir. 2019). “Schreiber argues the district court erred in dismissing his claims against the hospital defendants because he was entitled to discovery to determine whether they violated his “do not resuscitate” rights under Iowa Code Ann. §§ 144A.2(13), 144A.3(1), and 144B.”
— Iowa Code § 144A.2(7) — 1 case
Compassion in Dying v. Washington, 79 F.3d 790 (9th Cir. 1996). “1992); Iowa Code Ann. § 144A.2(7) (West 1989 & Supp.”
— Iowa Code § 144A.2(8) — 2 cases
State v. Murray, 512 N.W.2d 547 (Iowa 1994). “Murray urges that there is no case law or statutory support in Iowa for the decision to discontinue nutrition and medication to a living patient. He contends that, because no one had the authority to discontinue medication and nutrition under either Iowa Code section 235B.”
Compassion in Dying v. Washington, 79 F.3d 790 (9th Cir. 1996). “1992); Iowa Code Ann. § 144A.2(7) (West 1989 & Supp.”
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