Ezra Klein: Is The Government Going To Euthanize Your Grandmother?

Ezra Klein :

Sarah Palin's belief that the House health-care reform bill would create "death panels" might be particularly extreme, but she's hardly the only person to wildly misunderstand the section of the bill ordering Medicare to cover voluntary end-of-life counseling sessions between doctors and their patients.

One of the foremost advocates of expanding Medicare end-of-life planning coverage is Johnny Isakson, a Republican Senator from Georgia. He co-sponsored 2007's Medicare End-of-Life Planning Act and proposed an amendment similar to the House bill's Section 1233 during the Senate HELP Committee's mark-up of its health care bill. I reached Sen. Isakson at his office this afternoon. He was befuddled that this had become a question of euthanasia, termed Palin's interpretation "nuts," and emphasized that all 50 states currently have some legislation allowing end-of-life directives. A transcript of our conversation follows.

Read the whole story: Ezra Klein

Comments

[expired]

So, thanks to Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY), Speaker Pelosi says she will bring a vote to the floor on single-payer after the recess. Are you all ready to make those phone calls and write those letters?

Nancy's contact info..http://speaker.house.gov/contact/

Send our speaker an e-mail of encouragement.

[vicryl]

Proud to be ignorant

[wayoutleft]

so they're not really going to euthanize grandma. it's all just empty promises as usual. Everybody wants to be a nazi and backs down at the last minute. and the murdering babies thing went so well. if we're looking for a program to expand, this may be it.

[LDS50]

I just had a guy tell me that if Obama's plan passed, MRI's would be a thing of the past - too expensive. I asked what he did for a living. Guess what, he sold health insurance.

He compared denying for pre existing conditions to denying insurance to drunk drivers. Amazing.

[plaidsportcoat]

http://www.alternet.org/politics/141819/is_the_u.s._on_the_brink_of_fascism?page=4

We're already more than half way there.

[FebM]

Isakson of GA is now going ballistic that Prez obama misquoted him, yet here he is saying exactly that on the senate floor. The worst bit is he makes sense, then, he made sense in his interview with Ezra Klein but he has just remembered he needs the deathers for re-election

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPqRFuSZyZg&feature=player_embedded

[bluecollarblogger]

Just add to the fire with the title of your post! There is so much misinformation it is unbelievable, and we are a sound bite nation, people will grab that title, and be standing on a corner tomorrow!

[FebM]

Someone was shouting out their opposition to any gov plan that would prevent insurance companies from denying insurance due to pre-existing conditions!

Woh! He must be the owner of the health insurance

[force fed up]

Republicans fail to understand words like Voluntarily or Option because those are choices and the Republicans don't like letting people have choices.

[Sean Tisdall]

The senator who inserted this provision is a Republican who is in favor of giving people these choices...

You know, if you're going to be blindly partisan, could you at least identify yourself as such by calling Sen. Isakson a 'Rethuglican' or something equally as stupidly partisan as Democrat-Socialist or Democrat Party or tax-and-spend.

[nomobull]

and you need to work on comprehending before attacking.

[force fed up]

"this provision" who are you talking to? Apparently you're all worked up and you don't know why.

[cruisepuppy7452a]

Its called a DNR or Comfort measures. Doctors and insurance companies use deceptive language to describe it to patients, especially the elderly or those whose families are in the throws of crisis. NEVER allow a family member to agree to any of those terms unless they ar spelled out in clear, concise language they will understand. Kick them to the curb if they refuse. By law, they are not permitted to automatically do this to anyone without thier written consent, one that is not made in the throws of fear, anger, mental confusion, if money is involved, ie life insurance policies on anyone? I personally watched a hospital do this to an uncle of mine who was retarded, who did not understand the language, the family wasn't in the clear frame of mind to comprehend the request, and blindly agreed to something that wasn't necessary. We lost a loved one needlessly. Don't let it happen to you or anyone you love. The idea nobody will have a quality of life is BS. Let the family and patient decide that, not the insurance companies or hospitals, nursing homes. Its cold blooded murder.

[susie1776]

What this article is about is the current law that requires hospitals, nursing homes, home care agencies etc to ask every patient whether they have something called a Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare or, if they would like to create one. In this document, the PATIENT states what they would or would not want done IF THEY WERE UNABLE TO SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES. They also appoint an advocate to speak for them. This is supposed to be someone with whom they have discussed their wishes. A DPA for Healthcare is legally binding but doesn't even go into effect if the patient is able to make his own decision. Anyone who doesn't have one in this day and age is an idiot! . A DNR (do not resuscitate) is a physician order that tells staff what to do ONLY IF THE PATIENT STOPS BREATHING. They are NOT the same thing, although a DNR order may be written as a result of what a patient has put in their DPA for HC. All the new law does is proposes to reimburse physicians for sitting down with a patient to discuss what they would want done. As a former RN, I would have questioned whether your retarded relative was competent to understand any legal/medical forms or to make such decisions. Legally, if the patient is declared incompetent, the court will appoint a conservator, usually not a family member to make decisions. But that's why having a DPA for HC is so important.

[mdlw]

Well, maybe you should check out Palin's death panel...

http://www.adn.com/life/health/story/864670.html

http://www.themudflats.net/2009/07/15/palins-health-care-priorities-and-alaskas-daughters/

http://palingates.blogspot.com/2009/08/sarah-palins-deadly-healthcare.html

[taptaptap]

Isakson says he doesn't "know how that got so mixed up". Mixed up or manipulated? If Palin really believes a living will is a "death panel", it's an indictment of the American education system (she actually graduated?) and the American political system (she was actually a VP nominee!). If she made it up (obviously, not "thinking of the troops" and exploiting her child), it's a reflection of her honesty and decency.

[sviolette]

It only took her six years to get a 4 year degree. Not bad for a republican.

[Josh Popichak]

Wow, his headline is just so helpful to the debate. Thanks Ezra! You are a real humanitarian for joking about something like euthanizing Grandma.

[MochasMom]

They are not going to euthanize anyone's grandmother. But they are going to euthanize all the people who believe that they are planning on euthanizing anyone's grandmother.

[barksalot]

Euthanize your grandmother? With the limited access to doctors and surgeons it won't be necessary.