First-ever order given to remove life-support tube

In the first case of its kind in Spain, the local health department of Huelva, Andalusia, on Tuesday ordered a hospital to remove a nasogastric tube from a patient, Ramona Estévez, on the wishes of her family.

Estévez suffered massive brain damage due to a stroke on July 26. On August 4, doctors fitted the tube to the patient to keep her alive. "It has turned her into a machine for pumping blood," Estévez's son told EL PAÍS. "This may be viable technically, but it not acceptable or humane."

The regional government of Andalusia took less than 24 hours to reach the decision. The regional law on death with dignity, introduced in 2010, is "well-rounded and clear," said a spokesman from the health department. "Every person has the right to refuse intervention on the part of medical professionals, even at risk to life."

National rules clarifying the right to refuse treatment are still going through the legislative process, but Spain's Socialist government has been at pains to stress that they will not constitute a "euthanasia law."