They wailed, they denied, they explained, but it still stuck. The Obamacare law was pretty clear. The perfect way to "contain costs" and "bend the cost curve" is to control spending. The best way to control spending is to ration care. The best way to ration care is to deny it to elderly who have a poor prognosis. If a hip replacement will give you two more years of mobility but you are already 85 years old, maybe that isn't a good investment as far as the government is concerned.
Medicine can prolong life. That is a primary purpose. There is a point at which such prolongation is futile, but I would like to have some voice in that decision. If I can't speak for myself then let it be SWMBO and my doctors. But, please don't let it be some Kathleen Sebelius appointed bureaucrat thumbing through a dog-eared loose-leaf manual of policy guidelines.
In the debate, the bureaucratic controlled approach was labeled as government death panels. The terminology is harsh, but what else could they be called? Someone from government is going to be detached, unemotional, and uninformed applying cost control guidelines to determine if you live or die.
In a rare moment of responsiveness to public outrage during the healthcare debate, the death panel provisions were deleted from the 2600 page legislative prescription.
Did that deter the Bamster from his quest to control your very life? It doesn't seem so:
Can't Legislate? Regulate! Yes We Can!
The early report is that the opening session of the 112th Congress will begin with a reading of the United States Constitution. Let us hope that the reader will offer some rhetorical emphasis on the concepts of our national government as one of limits. Let us hope that the reader will stress the role of the legislature in making the policy and not the executive branch. Let us hope that the function of legislative oversight of executive branch over-reaching will be mentioned. Let us fervently pray that the ability of the Supreme Court to declare such over-reach unconstitutional will be considered.
3 comments:
I agree whole heartedly your disertation on the Obamacare problem. Personally, I will never use medicare, hospitalization or medical treatment here in America. There are several reasons, quality of care, money being the stimulous, AMA spearheading the funds drive, complacency and basic lack of concern.
We rank 23rd in the world for care, New Zealand is #3, I think Sweden is #1, but that doesn't matter. The AMA is an evil network that has cost the lives of millions of people around the globe, ask any doctor in other countries.
Cheers, tom smith, smithsez@gmail.com
Great idea re the Constitution.
The fact that it CAN be read at said opening says it all. A masterpiece of clarity and brevity.
Anyone out there keen for a reading of the 500+ page EU Constitution or the 200+ page UN Charter?.
Anonymous, our healthcare in NZ is ok but over 75% state subsidized.
New Zealand has a bloated welfare state that we can no longer afford.
We have our problems too and if they were faced up to today we would quickly fall off the #3 perch.
Congress read The Constitution?
What a great idea!
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