Florida Governor Jeb Bush has intervened in a dispute about whether a woman who has been in a coma since 1990 should be taken off life support, and ordered that her feeding tube be reinstated.
The tube was removed at her husband's request last week.
The governor's action, which followed a court ruling that Terri Schiavo, 39, should no longer be fed, is likely to result in a further court hearing.
Bush, the brother of the US president, acted after the Florida state congress voted to give him the power to order a stay on the removal of the tube. His order was on Wednesday being carried out at a Clearwater hospital after Schiavo was taken there from her hospice in St Petersburg, Florida.
She has been fed through a tube for 13 years since suffering heart failure caused by a chemical imbalance which left her in a vegetative state.
"This is a response to a tragic situation," Bush said. "People are responding to cries for help and I think it's legitimate."
His decision was welcomed by Schiavo's parents, who have always opposed her husband, Michael Schiavo, who wanted the feeding stopped.
"It has restored my belief in God," said her father, Bob Schindler. "This is blessed."
The woman's sister, Suzanne Carr, described the intervention as a "miracle."
Michael Schiavo, who has said that he wants his wife to be allowed to "die with dignity," expressed his disappointment. His lawyer, George Felos, said Michael Schiavo was "deeply troubled, angry and saddened that his wife's wishes have become a political Ping-Pong ... He, as many others, is absolutely stunned at the course of events."
Felos described the decision to reinstate the tubes as "inhumane and barbaric."
Terri Schiavo's husband and her parents have been in conflict over her treatment for a number of years. He claims that his wife always said she did not wish to live in a vegetative state, although she never stated this in the form of a living will.
Her parents, who say that their daughter shows signs of responding to them during visits, accuse her husband of being interested in the US$1 million damages that medical services have paid out in connection with Terri Schiavo's treatment at the time of her heart failure.
They have also suggested that he wants to be free to carry on his relationship with another woman. He has denied their allegations and said that he only wants to honor his wife's wishes.
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