Includes bibliographical references and index.

Principles and theories: Moral reasoning in bioethics -- Bioethics and moral theories -- Medical professional and patient: Paternalism and patient autonomy -- Truth-telling and confidentiality -- Informed consent -- Human research -- Life and death: Abortion -- Reproductive technology -- Genetic choices -- Euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide -- Justice and health care: Dividing up health care resources.

Bioethics: Principles, Issues, and Cases, Second Edition, explores the philosophical, medical, social, and legal aspects of key bioethical issues. Opening with a thorough introduction to ethics, bioethics, and moral reasoning, it then covers influential moral theories and the criteria for evaluating them. Integrating eighty-five readings--thirteen of them new to this edition--numerous cases, and abundant pedagogical tools, the book addresses the most provocative and controversial topics in bioethics.

Updated throughout, the second edition incorporates new information on justice, health care, and health insurance reform along with more coverage of issues related to race and culture and of the moral challenges facing nurses and other health care professionals. It also offers additional step-by-step guidance on how to identify and evaluate moral arguments in real-world contexts, with accompanying exercises and answers in an appendix.