US Congress delays bid to keep woman in coma alive

THE US Congress yesterday put off action on a bill aimed at prolonging the life of a brain-damaged woman who had her feeding tube removed by court order.

House Speaker Dennis Hastert, an Illinois Republican, convened the House in a rare Sunday session, but immediately recessed it until further notice.

The bid to keep Terri Schiavo alive, by passing a bill which would allow the tube to be restored while federal courts review her case, was halted in the face of anticipated objections from at least one Democrat that could temporarily stall the measure.