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Judge extends life-support cutoff to Jan. 7 for California teen

OAKLAND, Calif., Dec. 30 (UPI) -- The family of Jahi McMath said it was seeking options as a judge Monday extended the deadline to disconnect the girl's life-support to Jan 7.

The ruling allows Children's Hospital in Oakland, Calif., to disconnect the equipment at 5 p.m. Jan 7, KTVU-TV, San Francisco, reported. Jahi, 13, was declared brain-dead Dec. 12, after suffering complications from tonsil surgery three days earlier.

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The family wants to transfer the girl to another facility, and spent Sunday attempting to line up the option, they told KGO-TV, San Francisco.

A statement released Saturday by the family mentioned transferring her to one of two facilities, in Southern California and New York, that "have expressed preliminary approval."

The case has drawn national attention and sparked protests from local leaders who claim the hospital should have provided better care, CNN added.

Medical ethicists say the case suggests brain-death is somehow not as final as cardiac death, although by definition it is.

The case is "giving the impression that dead people can come back to life," Arthur Caplan, director of the Division of Medical Ethics at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York, told CNN.

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