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Thread: Should there be reasonable age limits for healthcare

  1. #11
    Senior Member razz's Avatar
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    i thought about this thread while walking my dog. What is quality of life, how defined by whom? It occurred to me that the question should "fear of death". Some people are so terrified of death and choose extremes of treatment with the blind hope that death can be avoided.

    Age should never be a factor in decisions especially now as people are living so much longer than 100 years ago.
    As Cicero said, “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.”

  2. #12
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    I think if it is cost savings that you are after, we would be much better served as a society by making our health care system resemble England's or Canada's, which would result in many people getting help for conditions earlier, being able to manage disease more effectively because they could afford their drugs, etc. This would be a tremendous cost savings down the road.

  3. #13
    Senior Member Rogar's Avatar
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    I think a good medical system should also a person to make his or her own decisions. However, once you get into the spiraling decline after ineffective treatments I think the medical system is remiss in advising patients of reasonable alternatives that would maintain a quality of life, even if it is shortened.

  4. #14
    Senior Member iris lilies's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rogar View Post
    I think a good medical system should also a person to make his or her own decisions. However, once you get into the spiraling decline after ineffective treatments I think the medical system is remiss in advising patients of reasonable alternatives that would maintain a quality of life, even if it is shortened.
    Sigh.

    I would bet that many of the patients receiving extreme health care treatments have been “advised” it will likely do little.

    See, here’s the thing: liberals cannot make humans behave the way they want them to by sheer education, just like law and order types cannot make humans behave the way they want them to via laws.

    Education and laws offer guidance for human behavior, but will not guarantee an absolute outcome.

  5. #15
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    I think if it is cost savings that you are after, we would be much better served as a society by making our health care system resemble England's or Canada's, which would result in many people getting help for conditions earlier, being able to manage disease more effectively because they could afford their drugs, etc. This would be a tremendous cost savings down the road.
    why bother looking at things that are actually proven to work to control costs when we can try things that have never been tried anywhere that sound good, like cutting off all healthcare over 75 or something? Why 75, why not 65 , why not 45 (I mean you've likely done your childbearing if you are going to, so not that much reason to keep you around). I don't think the medical system is all that aggressive in pushing hopeless treatment, but it's true after a certain age some stuff the risk outweights the benefits and some people get in trouble getting too many screenings that make them sicker than not, but uh the medical system also recognizes this to some extent already, it's not recommending colonoscopies and mamagrams etc. after a certain age. It might recommend things that will releave pain, that's where it's iffy, if a knee or hip replacement is worth doing etc..
    Trees don't grow on money

  6. #16
    Simpleton Alan's Avatar
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    I feel sad that society has reached a point where strangers feel entitled to make life and death decisions for me as a matter of policy.
    "Things should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler." ~ Albert Einstein

  7. #17
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    I feel sad that there does not seem to be a sense of the sanctity of life in the culture at large, but I suppose that is not relevant to the discussion at hand.

  8. #18
    Senior Member flowerseverywhere's Avatar
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    I apologize IL for sounding arrogant. I’m just thinking random thoughts about healthcare based on what I see around me. I did not mean to judge or offend. I should have worded that differently.

    Right now healthcare is rationed. Even if you work many hours a week you have no guarantee of decent healthcare. Huge deductibles, unaffordable policies and many things not available makes for rationing. In that way politicians are indeed making life and death decisions for a portion of our population.

    i am appalled when I have heard democrats defending providing healthcare for people illegally in this country when we are not taking care of our own citizens. Others may think that to be cruel, but we have a ridiculous homeless and lack of affordable healthcare for hard working tax paying Americans either by mandates, lack of them, and so on.


    We are all looking at life through a different lens and experiences have further shaped our thinking.

    All i I know is our current system is not good and needs to be improved.

    After 10 years of repeal and replace I don’t see a replacement being offered. I have not seen any democrat proposals that make total sense, but at least they have some ideas.

    Also, thanks for input on experiences in no DNR issues.

    We pay way way too much for drugs. Insulin and epipens are prime examples. Those are not new life saving drugs but have been around for quite a while. A good portion of our insurance premiums go to big shiny buildings full of pencil pushers and bean counters. And reams of paperwork. Instead of direct patient care. Our system is broken. There has to be reasonable solutions.

  9. #19
    Senior Member Teacher Terry's Avatar
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    For once I agree with Alan. Doctors sometimes give people false hope. Both my parents had a DNR. I have seen my dad refuse surgery because he was sick for 14 years and wanted to die. He was only at the VA hospital for them to find and place him in a home since his care became too much for my elderly mom. He was not competent from a stroke. After we left they tried to get him to sign papers so they could do the surgery. He refused and was dead 3 days later. We never understood why they did that. Maybe they needed practice. Ugh!

  10. #20
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    I believe the patient should have the right to decide. In the case of my father, who had a massive heart attack, he said NO to heart surgery. The hospital called my younger brother to tell him to bring the family to the hospital to say goodbye. Brother proceeded to threaten a lawsuit if they did not “fix his heart.” So they promptly wheeled him into surgery. He died 61 days later, fully recovered from heart surgery, but all of his other organs were worn out. He was discharged from the acute care hospital after 10 days, and spent the rest of his life in a nursing home. It was a horrible, demeaning, demoralizing existence. He refused to eat, so they tube fed him, again because my brother threatened. I truly believe the Patient should have the right to decide.

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