Old but the law can't do anything about people starving themselves to death any more than forcing cancer patients to undergo chemotherapy against their will or force people and their children to get routine vaccines. A cancer patient can choose not to get painful, invasive treatment (especially if they don't have any kind of decent prognosis), or if they want to try holistic medicine instead, that is their right.
If people want to take a chance on contracting measles or whatever, that is also their right, and they also can choose whether to seek medical treatment after they contract the infection.
A mentally ill person does not have to seek therapy, get diagnosed or take meds unless they are considered a danger to themselves or others, which does not include delusional thinking or even hallucinations. The law can't come in unless there is *immediate* danger as in the person is actively ODing or state that they are actually going somewhere local to them with weapons and intend to harm or take lives.
"Mentally unsound" is not "tee-hee I'm just really thin!" it is people that don't remember who they are, don't know what year it is, don't recognize anyone they know and are therefore incapable of caring for their own basic needs as in keeping themselves fed and keeping track of their finances.
Even some extreme cases where people are refusing medical treatment for their child with a terminal illness (actual child, not mid twenties child) there's still some debate as to whether the law should even be able to interfere there.
If you think the law should be involved in healthcare, or any given person should have the ability to force you to get medical treatment without having power of attorney, you would change your tune real quick once it came to you.
