End of Life Care Rationing?

What do you envision when your time comes to get ready for the exit from the breathing tax paying world to that of the pushing up daisy world?  No matter whether you are a firm believer in "quality vs quantity" or in the "I want to go peacefully" mode, you will no doubt find this debate of interest.  Why should the government decide who lives and who dies?  Why should the government be involved in such a personal private decision?

Does this subject give you chills?  It certainly gives them to me as we wait and see if the government is successful in taking over health care by the reform bill on the table.


Thought you'd want to follow this debate of the analyists for the government potentially using Medicare patients as a way to ration, and therefore, "contain" medical costs.

Does the U.S. Need to Ration Costly End-of-Life Care?

/PRNewswire/ -- With skyrocketing Medicare costs contributing to record-setting budget deficits, does the United States need to ration costly end-of-life care? This compelling topic will be the focus of an upcoming debate produced by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia, in partnership with MacNeil/Lehrer Productions and The National Press Club.

The debate will take place at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, March 24 at 7:00 pm ET. It will be webcast live at www.millercenter.org and air later on PBS stations across the country.

Debaters include:
-- Ken Connor, Chairman, Center for a Just Society, Gov. Jeb Bush's
Attorney in Terri Schiavo case
-- Marie Hilliard, Director of Bioethics and Public Policy, National
Catholic Bioethics Center
-- Dr. Ira Byock, Director of Palliative Medicine, Dartmouth-Hitchcock
Medical Center, Author, "Dying Well"
-- Arthur Caplan, Director, Center for Bioethics, University of
Pennsylvania


Susan Dentzer, Editor-in-Chief of "Health Affairs" and a "PBS NewsHour" analyst, will moderate the debate.

With more than one-fourth of Medicare expenses going to medical treatment in patients' last year of life, debaters will argue what, if anything, the government should do to contain costs. Should the government spend less on costly end-of-life procedures and instead use these resources to care for more patients? Would it be better to ration by choice and let patients and their doctors decide on end-of-life care, such as living wills and pain management? What would be the social implications of a rationing policy? Would the government be deciding who is worth saving and who is not?

This debate will be followed later this spring by debates on the cost of college moderated by Ray Suarez, senior correspondent for "PBS NewsHour" and on the impact of the Internet on democracy moderated by Robin MacNeil of MacNeil/Lehrer Productions.

The Miller Center of Public Affairs is a leading nonpartisan public policy institution aimed at bringing together engaged citizens, scholars, members of the media and government officials to focus on issues of national importance to the governance of the United States, with a special interest in the American presidency.

Are States Starting to Stand Up for States Rights?

States rights. What a concept. If I recall, history has shown that disagreements over states rights can lead to unrest. Remember the states rights which were fought over in the War Between the States? History has shown us in Union and Confederate blood that states really don't like being told what and how to do it by those who aren't walking in their proverbial shoes.

Thought you'd be interested in this story as some states are beginning to flex their rights against mandated federal government healthcare.

Nineteen States Move to Defend Individual Health Care Choice
By Susan Jones, Senior Editor

Regardless of what the U.S. Congress decides about health care reform, a growing number of states are standing up for individuals’ freedom of choice when it comes to purchasing – or not purchasing – health insurance.

Several Kansas Republicans have introduced a state constitutional amendment that would protect the right of Kansas residents to make their own health care choices. That makes Kansas the 19th state.....http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/56144

Finally, a Health Care Bill We the People can Read Online

The Senate Finance Committee has released their 1500 page version of Health Care Reform. It's going to take a while to read it all. At first glance, I saw lots of subsections which I must read to see if I can determine what they really mean.

Have fun reading it. Have more fun trying to understand it all.

Maybe we'll have ample oppportunity to read it before the vote happens. Maybe our elected officials will also read the bill. Oh, sorry. I must be dreaming.....

http://finance.senate.gov/press/Bpress/2009press/prb101909.pdf

White House Wants Your Video on Health Reform

Just thought you'd want to know the White House is asking for your videos on why health care reform is important. So, perhaps we should all make videos showing why the current health care reform bill is so wrong for America and what could be done for effective health care reform? Start with tort reform?

Oh yes, and once again, this is a spam email from the White House. This time, it's from the Office of Health Reform. Gee, I didn't know that was an official office.

Here is a portion of the email (the myth is no health care reform needed):

You can help the Vice President debunk this myth by uploading your own video on why reform matters to you. This is an opportunity for Americans of all backgrounds and situations to make the case for reform in your own words.

And they've come up with a quiz to help you. Uh, huh.