Blood transfusions and Jehovah's Witnesses

Jehovah's Witnesses believe that a human must not sustain his life with another creature's blood, and they recognize no distinction "between taking blood into the mouth and taking it into the blood vessels." It is their deep-seated religious conviction that Jehovah will turn his back on anyone who receives blood transfusions (1). Thus, Jehovah's Witnesses regularly refuse transfusions for themselves and their children because they believe the procedure creates a risk of losing eternal salvation. Legally, such refusals are based on the constitutional grounds that the transfusion is an invasion of the right of privacy and a violation of the individual's freedom of religious practice. When courts review these refusals they focus on state interests that outweigh the individual's rights. With an eye toward providing guidance to Texas physicians in dealing with such refusals, this article reviews case law on the subject of blood transfusions and Jehovah's Witnesses.