Obama Resurrects ‘Death Panels’ in New Medicare Regs
Congressional supporters of the new policy knew it was coming, but kept quiet, according to the NYT for fear of provoking “another furor like the one in 2009 when Republicans seized on the idea of end-of-life counseling to argue that the Democrats’ bill would allow the government to cut off care for the critically ill.”
The Americano
The proposal Democrats dropped from their Health Care bill after it touched off a political firestorm over what opponents called “death panels” will go into effect not as a law, but rather as a new Medicare regulation on Jan. 1.
The administration planned it brilliantly. It kept quiet about the new regulation and its supporters even suggested not to talk about it for fear someone might discover and derail it before it went into effect.
The timing was also impeccable. The story disclosing the new Medicare regulation that approves payment to doctors who advise patients for end-of-life care, which may include directives to forgo aggressive life-sustaining treatment, was published Christmas day by The New York Times.
By then President Barack Obama was on vacation in Hawaii with his family and plenty of time to play golf. The 111th Congress adjourned last week and the new one won’t be sworn in until Jan. 5, too late to try to impede passage of the new regulation.
Washington is deserted with most politicians away in their districts, or on vacation.
Congressional supporters of the new policy knew it was coming, but kept quiet, according to the NYT for fear of provoking “another furor like the one in 2009 when Republicans seized on the idea of end-of-life counseling to argue that the Democrats’ bill would allow the government to cut off care for the critically ill.”
In the House version of the Health Care Reform bill, Medicare was allowed to pay for consultations about advance care planning every five years, including in them discussions with the patients of “end-or-life treatment”.
The final bill signed into law in March eliminated the language that talks about the “end of life treatment.” The law’s language merely authorizes Medicate to pay for yearly physical examinations or wellness visits. The new rule now will allow annual discussions of the “end-of-life” issue as part of the approved welfare visit.
Under the new rule, doctors can provide information to patients on how to prepare an “advance directive,” stating how aggressively they wish to be treated if they are so sick that they cannot make health care decisions for themselves.
According to the NYT, Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-Or.) quietly celebrated news of the new regulation when he heard about it in November and urged supporters of the measure “not to crow about it.”
“While we are very happy with the result, we won’t be shouting it from the rooftops because we aren’t out of the woods yet,” Blumenauer’s office said in an e-mail in early November to people working with him on the issue. “This regulation could be modified or reversed, especially if Republican leaders try to use this small provision to perpetuate the ‘death panel’ myth.”
According to the NYT, the e-mail added: “We would ask that you not broadcast this accomplishment out to any of your lists, even if they are ‘supporters’ — e-mails can too easily be forwarded.”
The e-mail continued: “Thus far, it seems that no press or blogs have discovered it, but we will be keeping a close watch and may be calling on you if we need a rapid, targeted response. The longer this goes unnoticed, the better our chances of keeping it.”
Opponents of the measure said the Obama administration was bringing back a procedure that could be used to justify the premature withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment from people with severe illnesses and disabilities.
Elizabeth D. Wickham, executive director of Life Tree, which describes itself as “a pro-life Christian educational ministry,” told the NYT that she was concerned that end-of-life counseling would encourage patients to forgo or curtail care, thus hastening death.
“Patients will lose the ability to control treatments at the end of life,” Wickham said.
TheAmericano/Agencies
Help Make A Difference By Sharing These Articles On Facebook, Twitter And Elsewhere:
