Also known as: medical treatments · medical care
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
Services or procedures administered by health professionals to diagnose, treat, or prevent disease or injury. The term encompasses care ranging from routine interventions to lifesaving measures and is treated as a necessary in support obligations or as a compensable expense in tort actions.
Maurice Marshall stopped depositing business profits into the joint account after redirecting funds to his separate practice. Melanie Morris incurred charges for their child's weekly therapy sessions and emergency asthma treatments. She petitioned the court for support, and the court ordered Maurice to pay the outstanding medical bills as necessaries because the child's condition created an unmet need that he had the ability to meet.
Ming Ma suffered a severe back injury when a delivery truck struck his vehicle. His spouse Mina Mehta paid for physical therapy sessions and home nursing care out of her own funds. She joined a claim for loss of society and services, recovering the reasonable medical expenses she incurred while providing treatment during his recovery.
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Marco Marquez, an obstetrician, advised a patient that continuing her pregnancy posed serious health risks. The patient chose to terminate after discussing medical options with him. The decision rested with the physician's professional judgment up to the point where state interests became compelling.
Miguel Mendoza, an adult patient, executed an advance directive refusing artificial nutrition after a severe stroke. Hospital staff sought to override the directive on life-sustaining grounds. The court upheld his liberty interest in rejecting the treatment, consistent with precedents recognizing limits on state power to mandate medical care.
Marathon Logistics employees suffered toxic exposure during a spill. Several required ongoing medical treatment including respiratory therapy and specialist visits. The court considered the documented cost of that treatment when calibrating the punitive damages award to punish and deter the company's conduct.
Mosaic Retail sought to bring a specialist from a restricted country to treat an executive's rare condition. The company applied for a waiver under the proclamation's medical-treatment category. The government approved the waiver after confirming the treatment was unavailable domestically and posed no security concern.
A spouse may be held liable for medical care purchased by the other spouse as necessaries when the purchasing spouse lacks support and the liable spouse has the ability to pay. The obligation arises regardless of agency authority and is measured by the circumstances of the parties.
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The deprived spouse may recover for loss of society and services, including impairment of sexual capacity, plus reasonable expenses incurred in providing the medical treatment. Recovery requires joinder with the impaired spouse's bodily-harm claim unless joinder is impossible.
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A competent adult possesses a liberty interest in refusing lifesaving medical treatment, including nutrition and hydration. States may impose procedural safeguards such as clear-and-convincing evidence requirements before terminating treatment for incompetent patients.
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A parent under a legal duty to furnish medical treatment for a minor child may be required to pay expenses reasonably incurred or likely to be incurred during the child's minority. This duty appears in multiple Restatement provisions addressing harms to children.
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…restrictions are tailored to the recognized state interests. The decision vindicates the right of the physician to administer medical treatment according to his professional judgment up to the points where important state interests provide compelling justifications for intervention. Up to those points, the abortion decision in all…