Uniform Determination of Death Act

The Uniform Determination of Death Act (UDDA) is a draft state law that was approved for the United States (US) in 1980 by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, in cooperation with the American Medical Association, the American Bar Association, and the President's Commission on Medical Ethics. The act has since been adopted by most US states and is intended "to provide a comprehensive and medically sound basis for determining death in all situations".

The three sections of the Act proposed for enactment read as follows .:

Section 1
Determination of Death. An individual who has sustained either (1) irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions, or (2) irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem, is dead. A determination of death must be made in accordance with accepted medical standards.

Section 2
Uniformity of Construction and Application. This Act shall be applied and construed to effectuate its general purpose to make uniform the law with respect to the subject of this Act among states enacting it.

Section 3
Short Title. This Act may be cited as the Uniform Determination of Death Act.