National Right to Life joins with countless others worldwide in expressing sympathy to the Schindler family over the death of Terri Schiavo. Terri died of starvation and dehydration today, nearly 13 days after her feeding tube was removed under court order. The following statement may be attributed to Burke Balch, J.D., Director of the Robert Powell Center for Medical Ethics at the National Right to Life Committee:

“We are deeply saddened by Terri’s death and extend our heartfelt sympathy to the Schindler family. Terri Schiavo’s death is a gross injustice and it marks a sad day in our history when our society allows Terri and others like her who have severe disabilities to be discarded in such a cruel and inhumane manner.

We must redouble our efforts to protect those with disabilities. We will continue working to ensure that they are not dismissed by some “quality of life” standard which dictates that some lives are less worthy than others.