[ExI] Fwd: What if Medicare required a living will?

[Keith Henson]

On Sat, Apr 30, 2011 at 2:27 PM, Kelly Anderson <kellycoinguy at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Wed, Apr 27, 2011 at 7:04 PM, Keith Henson <hkeithhenson at gmail.com> wrote:
>> A remarkable proportion of healthcare costs go to
>> the very last days or hours of our lives.”
>
> Something like 50% of expenses are in the last two years, last I heard.
>
>> His idea is voluntary. But I’d make a different suggestion. What if,
>> to be eligible for Medicare, you had to give someone power of attorney
>> and sign a living will?
>
> Then the government would have to hire legions of lawyers. Still, this
> is an interesting idea.

Why?  I have one and there were no lawyers involved.

It could be as simple as a check sheet and a place to fill in the name
of someone who you trust to make the decisions you would make it you
are in a coma or something.

snip

> I'd much rather have a group of well meaning
> doctors deciding my fate than a bunch of bureaucratic government
> types. I haven't read Palin's specific fears...

The trouble is, doctors or the hospital they work for, have a
financial interest in spending a ton of money for end of life care.
Or they fear they will be sued by relatives if they don't do
everything possible to revive someone who might not want it.

The function of living wills is to take such power out of the doctors
hands and put it in your own.  You can always say you want all
possible measures taken to keep you "alive" no matter how bad the
outcome.

But most people don't want extreme measures taken to keep them alive
and in pain or in a vegetative state.

snip

Keith