Table of Contents

*=New to this Edition
Chapters 3-10 include an "Applying Major Theories" section.
Chapters 3-11 include Cases for Evaluation.
Each chapter includes Key Terms, a Summary, Further Reading, and Notes.
Preface:
PART 1. PRINCIPLES AND THEORIES
CHAPTER 1. MORAL REASONING IN BIOETHICS
Ethics and Bioethics
Ethics and the Moral Life
In Depth: Morality and the Law:
Moral Principles in Bioethics
Autonomy:
* Nonmaleficence:
Beneficence:
Utility:
Justice:
Ethical Relativism
In Depth: Anthropology and Moral Diversity:
Ethics and Religion
Moral Arguments
Argument Fundamentals:
Patterns of Moral Arguments:
Review: Valid and Invalid Argument Forms:
In Depth: Fallacies in Moral Reasoning:
Evaluating Premises:
Assessing Whole Arguments:
CHAPTER 2. BIOETHICS AND MORAL THEORIES
The Nature of Moral Theories
Influential Moral Theories
Utilitarianism:
In Depth: Utilitarianism and the Golden Rule:
Kantian Ethics:
Natural Law Theory:
Rawls' Contract Theory:
Virtue Ethics:
The Ethics of Care:
In Depth: Can Virtue Be Taught?:
Feminist Ethics:
* Casuistry:
Criteria for Judging Moral Theories
Review: Evaluating Moral Theories: Criteria of Adequacy:
Applying the Criteria
Utilitarianism:
Kant's Theory:
READINGS:
"Utilitarianism," John Stuart Mill
"The Moral Law," Immanuel Kant
"Virtue and the Moral Life," Bernard Mayo
"The Ethics of Care," Virginia Held
* "Moral Saints," Susan Wolf
PART 2. MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL AND PATIENT
CHAPTER 3. PATERNALISM AND PATIENT AUTONOMY
Shades of Autonomy and Paternalism
Refusing Treatment
In Depth: The Hippocratic Oath:
* In Depth: Physician Autonomy:
Futile Treatment
Legal Brief: Refusing Treatment for Children on Religious Grounds:
In Depth: CPR and DNR:
In Depth: Moral Conflicts in Nursing:
Classic Case File: Elizabeth Bouvia
READINGS:
"Paternalism," Gerald Dworkin
"The Refutation of Medical Paternalism," Alan Goldman
"Why Doctors Should Intervene," Terrence F. Ackerman
"Autonomy, Futility, and the Limits of Medicine," Robert L. Schwartz
* "Patient Autonomy and Physician Responsibility," with Commentaries by Patrick C. Beeman and Ryan C. VanWoerkom Journal of Ethics
Bouvia v. Superior Court, California Court of Appeals
"Fundamental Elements of the Patient-Physician Relationship," AMA Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs
"In Defense of the Traditional Nurse," Lisa H. Newton
"Advocacy or Subservience for the Sake of Patients?" Helga Kuhse
CHAPTER 4. TRUTH-TELLING AND CONFIDENTIALITY
Paternalism and Deception
In Depth: Do Patients Want the Truth? Do Physicians Tell It?:
Confidential Truths
Legal Brief: Confidentiality and a Duty to Warn:
* In Depth: Truth-Telling and Cultural Diversity:
Classic Case File: Carlos R.
READINGS:
"Telling the Truth to Patients: A Clinical Ethics Exploration," David C. Thomasma
"On Telling Patients the Truth," Mack Lipkin
* "Is It Ever Okay to Lie to Patients?" Shelly K. Schwartz
"Respect for Patients, Physicians, and the Truth," Susan Cullen and Margaret Klein
"Why Privacy Is Important," James Rachels
"Confidentiality in Medicine--A Decrepit Concept," Mark Siegler
"Ethical Relativism in a Multicultural Society," Ruth Macklin
Tarasoff v. Regents of the University of California, Supreme Court of California
CHAPTER 5. INFORMED CONSENT
Autonomy and Consent
Conditions of Informed Consent
* In Depth: Decision-Making Capacity:
In Depth: Two Views of Informed Consent:
Legal Brief: Important Informed Consent Cases:
Classic Case File: Jerry Canterbury
READINGS:
"The Concept of Informed Consent," Ruth R. Faden and Tom L. Beauchamp
"Informed Consent--Must It Remain a Fairy Tale?" Jay Katz
"Transparency: Informed Consent in Primary Care," Howard Brody
"Informed Consent: Some Challenges to the Universal Validity of the Western Model," Robert J. Levine
Canterbury v. Spence, United States Court of Appeals
CHAPTER 6. HUMAN RESEARCH
The Science of Clinical Trials
In Depth: The Tuskegee Tragedy:
Beneficence, Science, and Placebos
Science and Informed Consent
In Depth: Women in Clinical Trials:
Research on the Vulnerable
In Depth: Why Enter a Clinical Trial?:
Classic Case File: The UCLA Schizophrenia Study
READINGS:
The Nuremberg Code:
Declaration of Helsinki: Ethical Principles for Medical Research Involving Human Subjects, World Medical Association
"The Belmont Report," The National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research
"Final Report: Human Radiation Experiments," Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments
"Of Mice but Not Men: Problems of the Randomized Clinical Trial," Samuel Hellman and Deborah S. Hellman
"A Response to a Purported Ethical Difficulty with Randomized Clinical Trials Involving Cancer Patients," Benjamin Freedman
"How to Resolve an Ethical Dilemma Concerning Randomized Clinical Trials," Don Marquis
"Racism and Research: The Case of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study," Allan M. Brandt
"The Ethics of Clinical Research in the Third World," Marcia Angell
"Ethical Issues in Clinical Trials in Developing Countries," Baruch Brody
PART 3. LIFE AND DEATH
CHAPTER 7. ABORTION
Starting Point: The Basics
Fact File: U.S. Abortions:
In Depth: Abortion and Public Opinion:
The Legal Struggle
In Depth: Late-Term Abortion:
Persons and Rights
* In Depth: Does a Fetus Feel Pain?:
Classic Case File: Nancy Klein
READINGS:
"A Defense of Abortion," Judith Jarvis Thomson
"Why Abortion Is Immoral," Don Marquis
"An Almost Absolute Value in History," John T. Noonan, Jr.
"On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion," Mary Anne Warren
* "Virtue Theory and Abortion," Rosalind Hursthouse
"Abortion and the Concept of a Person," Jane English
* "Abortion," Margaret Olivia Little
"Abortion Through a Feminist Ethics Lens," Susan Sherwin
Roe v. Wade, United States Supreme Court
Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, United States Supreme Court
CHAPTER 8. REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGY
In Vitro Fertilization
Fact File: Assisted Reproduction:
Surrogacy
In Depth: IVF and Children's Future Children:
Cloning
In Depth: Cloning Time Line:
* In Depth: Sherri Shepherd: How Surrogacy Can Go Wrong:
Classic Case File: Baby M
READINGS:
"IVF: The Simple Case," Peter Singer
"IVF and Women's Interests: An Analysis of Feminist Concerns," Mary Anne Warren
"'Give Me Children or I Shall Die!' New Reproductive Technologies and Harm to Children," Cynthia B. Cohen
"Instruction on Respect for Human Life in Its Origin and on the Dignity of Procreation," Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
"The Presumptive Primacy of Procreative Liberty," John A. Robertson
"Surrogate Mothering: Exploitation or Empowerment?" Laura M. Purdy
Is Women's Labor a Commodity?" Elizabeth S. Anderson
* "Egg Donation and Commodification," Bonnie Steinbock
"The Wisdom of Repugnance," Leon R. Kass
"Cloning Human Beings: An Assessment of the Ethical Issues Pro and Con," Dan W. Brock
Opinion in the Matter of Baby M, New Jersey Supreme Court
CHAPTER 9. GENETIC CHOICES
Genes and Genomes
Genetic Testing
In Depth: Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Tests:
Gene Therapy
Fact File: Available Genetic Tests for Cancer Risk:
Fact File: Recent Research in Gene Therapy:
Stem Cells
Classic Case File: The Kingsburys
READINGS:
"Implications of Prenatal Diagnosis for the Human Right to Life," Leon R. Kass
"Genetics and Reproductive Risk: Can Having Children Be Immoral?" Laura M. Purdy
"The Morality of Screening for Disability," Jeff McMahan
Genetic Dilemmas and the Child's Right to an Open Future," Dena S. Davis
"Disowning Knowledge: Issues in Genetic Testing," Robert Wachbroit
"The Non-Identity Problem and Genetic Harms--The Case of Wrongful Handicaps," Dan W. Brock
"Is Gene Therapy a Form of Eugenics?," John Harris
"Genetic Enhancement," Walter Glannon
* "Genetic Interventions and the Ethics of Enhancement of Human Beings," Julian Savulescu
"Germ-Line Gene Therapy," LeRoy Walters and Julie Gage Palmer
"What Does 'Respect for Embryos' Mean in the Context of Stem Cell Research?," Bonnie Steinbock
"Declaration on the Production and the Scientific and Therapeutic Use of Human Embryonic Stem Cells," Pontifical Academy for Life
CHAPTER 10. EUTHANASIA AND PHYSICIAN-ASSISTED SUICIDE
Deciding Life and Death
Legal Brief: Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide: Major Developments:
In Depth: Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide: What Do Doctors Think?:
Autonomy, Mercy, and Harm
In Depth: Oregon's Death With Dignity Act:
In Depth: Physician-Assisted Suicide and Public Opinion:
Classic Case File: Nancy Cruzan
READINGS:
"Death and Dignity: A Case of Individualized Decision Making," Timothy E. Quill
"Voluntary Active Euthanasia," Dan W. Brock
"When Self-Determination Runs Amok," Daniel Callahan
"Physician-Assisted Suicide: A Tragic View," John D. Arras
"Active and Passive Euthanasia," James Rachels
* "Dying at the Right Time: Reflections on (Un)Assisted Suicide," John Hardwig
"The Philosophers' Brief," Ronald Dworkin, Thomas Nagel, Robert Nozick, John Rawls, Thomas Scanlon, and Judith Jarvis Thomson
* "An Alternative to Brain Death," Jeff McMahan
Vacco v. Quill, U.S. Supreme Court
Washington v. Glucksberg, United States Supreme Court
PART 4. JUSTICE AND HEALTH CARE
CHAPTER 11. DIVIDING UP HEALTH CARE RESOURCES
Health Care in Trouble
In Depth: Unequal Health Care for Minorities:
Fact File: U.S. Health Care:
Theories of Justice
In Depth: Public Opinion: Obtaining Adequate Heath Care:
A Right to Health Care
* In Depth: Public Health and Bioethics:
The Ethics of Rationing
Classic Case File: Christine deMeurers
READINGS:
"Is There a Right to Health Care and, if So, What Does It Encompass?," Norman Daniels
"The Right to a Decent Minimum of Health Care," Allen E. Buchanan
"Rights to Health Care, Social Justice, and Fairness in Health Care Allocations: Frustrations in the Face of Finitude," H. Tristram Engelhardt, Jr.
Health Care Reform: Lessons from Canada," Raisa Berlin Deber
"The Allocation of Exotic Medical Lifesaving Therapy," Nicholas Rescher
"QALYfying the Value of Life," John Harris
* "Public Health Ethics: Mapping the Terrian," James F. Childress et al.
* "Human Rights Approach to Public Health Policy," D. Tarantola and S. Gruskin
Appendix:
Index:

About the Author

Lewis Vaughn is the author or coauthor of numerous books, including The Power of Critical Thinking, Fifth Edition, (2015), Philosophy Here and Now, Second Edition (2015), Living Philosophy: A Historical Introduction to Philosophical Ideas (2014), Philosophy: The Quest for Truth, Ninth Edition (2013), and The Moral Life, Fifth Edition (2013), all published by Oxford University Press.

Reviews

"Bioethics, Third Edition, is a truly top-notch book. My main reason for using it is Vaughn's extremely valuable original content in every chapter. I have recommended it to others and will continue to do so. I emphasize the price, the solid selection of readings, and Vaughn's superb pedagogical writing."--Tristram McPherson, Virginia Tech
"I think Bioethics is an excellent text. It is well-written, the price is right, and it contains all the central topics needed."--Joan McGregor, Arizona State University
"This is the text 'to beat' for a general undergraduate course in medical ethics. Each chapter has an engaging and concise summary and the cases help generate good initial discussions."--David Schwan, Bowling Green State University
"Bioethics strikes a good balance between ethical theory, real-life classic cases, and relevant policy documents. This makes it suitable for students from a wide range of disciplines, from philosophy and public health to medicine and the health sciences. I would recommend this book enthusiastically to all my colleagues who teach introductory bioethics courses. I would highlight its comprehensiveness, its user-friendly format and resources, and its good
balance between theory and applications, and between primary texts and case studies."--Assya Pascalev, Howard University
"This is an excellent bioethics textbook. It's better than competing books in terms of having a great selection of everything I'm looking for in a text; others have more readings but lack either theories, cases, or legal cases. I would definitely recommend Bioethics to other professors, because it's cheaper for students and covers much if not all of what a professor should cover in a bioethics course."--David Yount, Mesa Community College
"The diversity of pedagogical tools combined with a rich sampling of critical cases and important readings make this book a staple for anyone interested in coming to terms with the ethical issues facing modern medicine."--James Joiner, Northern Arizona University and Bioethicist at Regional Medical Center
"The discussion of moral reasoning and moral theories in the first two chapters is helpful for students who have not had a course in ethics. The case studies are well chosen for sparking discussion, and they shed light on competing values and ethical principles. Vaughn's introductions to the individual chapters are concise, clearly written, and generally helpful. The readings are balanced in that they include competing points of view."--Martin Gunderson,
Macalester College