When President Obama and the Congress were pushing through the new Health Care bill earlier this year, one of the most chilling sections of the measure being looked at was a proposed panel of Doctors set to determine the value of treatments to the elderly and senior citizens. This proposal that was intended to cut costs became morbidly known in the mainstream as 'death panels'.
The proponents of the bill argued that the panels meant no such thing, and were simply ways to 'assist' the elderly in choosing how best to bypass unnecessary treatments such as hip replacement surgery for someone who is bedridden. Opponents of the measure argued that the government was using the elderly as the primary source of cutting costs, and that they were deeming health care based on the 'value' the elderly attributed to society.
In the end, the panel of Doctors (death panel) was removed from the bill's passage, but the debate did not end. Sarah Palin, who was a staunch advocate against the potential of death panels because of her son Trig, saw the the removal of these panels from the bill simply an end-around play that would eventually be instituted by the President in an Executive Order, or by a regulatory agency outside the power of Congress.
In an article by the New York Sun yesterday, it appears that Palin's fears were correct in that the New York Times has confirmed President Obama is looking hard at implementing the death panels through regulatory bodies starting on January 1st.
Confirmation of Mrs. Palin’s scoop was brought in by the New York Times in a dispatch issued Christmas day, more than a year after Mrs. Palin issued her warning about Obamacare leading to government involvement in end-of-life issues.
At the time, Mrs. Palin’s prophecy touched off an enormous hue and a cry among the liberal intelligentsia, so much so that the scheme was dropped in Congress. Yet even though it was dropped by Congress the New York Times is reporting that “the Obama administration will achieve the same goal by regulation” and will start doing so January 1. The Times says that the government “will now pay doctors who advise patients on options for end-of-life care, which may include advance directives to forgo aggressive life-sustaining treatment.”
Here is a direct link to the New York Times article.
Most Americans realize that when a government agency begins regulation of anything, the program only grows bigger over time, and takes on more power than originally mandated. We have seen this with the EPA, who has used the simple regulation of greenhouse gases to begin imposing vast fines against states and cities, most of which they cannot afford.
Europe and the United Nations are both in support of, and are implementing similar death panel programs as a value cost way of cutting health care costs in socialized countries. It is true that the elderly require more healthcare than those who are younger, and the state sees their contribution to society is much less since they are out of the primary work force.
How long until the government or the state chooses euthanasia as a means to cull those who are deemed useless through expert panels? It is certainly not unprecedented as the founder of Planned Parenthood in the earth 20th century advocated euthanasia for the elderly, and several countries throughout last century instituted the very same programs against their own elderly and the disabled.
Sarah Palin has chosen the role of rogue in her political stances and crusades, and on many occasions her views swing wildly from one side to the other. However, it appears that in this case, she was right, and has been right for over a year that the intention of death panels by the President would be implemented by one agency, or another.
Comments
Wow, tea party much? Way to fuel the flames there Mr. Schortgen. Deciding on what health care a patient can get is what is happening now with the insurance companies anyway. Do you actually think that everyone with private health care gets everything they want covered by their insurance provider? Think again. The private insurance companies will deny you if they feel like it, force sick people to go through lengthy, demeaning, and sometimes costly appeals, and half the time will still deny the procedure, either on a technicality or just because they feel like it. Check yourself before you start making claims that the liberals are trying to kill us all. The insurance companies have been doing that for decades, and in actuality the liberals are trying to correct this with the health care bill.
Ahh, yes. The "it's already happening, so it's ok" argument.
Wow, tea party much? Way to fuel the flames there Mr. Schortgen. Deciding on what health care a patient can get is what is happening now with the insurance companies anyway. Do you actually think that everyone with private health care gets everything they want covered by their insurance provider? Think again. The private insurance companies will deny you if they feel like it, force sick people to go through lengthy, demeaning, and sometimes costly appeals, and half the time will still deny the procedure, either on a technicality or just because they feel like it. Check yourself before you start making claims that the liberals are trying to kill us all. The insurance companies have been doing that for decades, and in actuality the liberals are trying to correct this with the health care bill.
OBama, the wolf in sheep's clothing! I hope for our sakes, people like Palin continue to speak out before our world turns completely upside down.
C'mon--Obama is nothing of the kind!!! That's just hype.
"A recent poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation suggests that the idea of death panels persists. In the September poll, 30 percent of Americans 65 and older said the new health care law allowed a government panel to make decisions about end-of-life care for people on Medicare. The law has no such provision. "
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his is from the NYT article. Read the entire article to get the WHOLE story.
In your quote it says the 'Law' has no provision.
But the article isnt about the Healthcare Law, its about the President using regulatory agencies already in place in implement the panels... outside the Congressional limitations.
Thanks for your help in moving this debate along. I maintain that such debates are always great for democracy. Death Panels? What death panels? Everyday Americans experience what is called "Death Panels" every day from our "very moral" (rolling eyes) insurance companies. Hell, I had an opportunity to experience this with a family member not long ago. When your health insurance company tells you" you can't have this, that or whatever, and you really need it, the feeling and consequence can be quite devastating.
That indeed is a 10-4. I have little love for insurance companies, and Americans seem to think even the Doctors now are emboldened to Big Pharma.
You are missing the point. If your insurance co. tells you no, you can still pay for it yourself (if you can) and have it done. If the Feds take over, you won't have a choice. That is the problem. Lose of freedom, lose of choice. I know, I know a lot of people couldn't afford to pay themselves., yea, yea, there are lots of ways to raise money and even get free heath care now, in the old system, I've had many realitves taken care of at hospitals who couldn't pay the bill and have had their debt erased. But, back to the point, it is still a choice now, but soon it won't be.
@Irmc, there is nothing in the health care bill that prohibits someone from paying for care out of their own pocket. The Feds are not "taking over" - private insurance companies will still provide your coverage.
It is scary that a panel of doctor's could decide what happens to a dieing person. Please help us stop Obamacare. Join the only REAL repeal petition.
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