Healthcare rationing: Real scary by Newt Gingrich
Concerns about government bureaucracies gaining oversight of your treatment are not misplaced. We need reforms, but the answer is not central planning.
“If such rationing occurs, rules will be needed to determine whether to spend federal healthcare dollars on a given individual. What might those rules look like? Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel is a key healthcare advisor to President Obama and the brother of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. He co-wrote an academic article in January exploring the ethical challenges of valuing an individual’s life in the context of allocating medical resources that are very scarce, such as organs or vaccines.
In a 1996 article in another journal, Dr. Emanuel similarly hypothesized that “services provided to individuals who are irreversibly prevented from being or becoming participating citizens are not basic and should not be guaranteed. An obvious example is not guaranteeing health services to patients with dementia.”
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http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-gingrich16-2009aug16,0,310602.story
I’m thinking that when I go to DC next month, I’ll list some of the oldest members of Congress and suggest that THEY take the Blue Pill for the benefit of younger people who want to be in Congress.
Hmmmmmmmmmm I can start with a Republican: Chuck Grassley, 76; Daniel Inouye, 85; George Voinovich, 73; Patrick Leahy, 69; Harry Reid, 70 this year (boy does he look twenty years older than that); Richard Shelby, 75; Christopher (Kit) Bond, 70; Charles Schumer, 59; Christopher Dodd, 65; Barbara Mikulski, 73; Johnny Isakson, will be 65 this year; Roland Burris, 72, NOT RUNNING; Jim Bunning, 78 this year, NOT RUNNING; Judd Gregg, 62; Ron Wyden, 60; Arlen Specter, 79 (he looks 10 years older); Byron Dorgan, 67; John McCain, 73; Barbara Boxer, turns 69; Russ Feingold, 56 (A CHILD IN THIS GROUP); Mike Crapo, 58 (ANOTHER CHILD); Evan Bayh, 54 this year (ANOTHER CHILD); Patty Murray, Will Be 59; David Vitter, 48 (A BABY OF THE GROUP); Blanche Lincoln, 49 (Second Youngest?); Bob Bennett, 54, Yet Another Child); Richard Burr, will be 55 (Another Child); Tom Coburn, 61; Sam Brownback, 53 (Another Child); John Thune, 48 (Another BABY); Jim DeMint, 58; Lisa Murkowski, 52 (she’s young, acts old); Mel Martinez, 63 (NOT RUNNING); Michael Bennet, 60.
There are 325 House Members up for Reelection. I’m not going to list them (you’re glad), but I may make a list for myself of those age 62 and older.