'Euthanasia' claims stoke seniors' fears on health care

A campaign on conservative talk radio — fueled unintentionally by President Obama's calls to control exorbitant medical bills — has sparked fear among senior citizens that the health-care overhaul bill moving through Congress will lead to end-of-life "rationing" and even "euthanasia."

By Ceci Connolly

The Washington Post

WASHINGTON — A campaign on conservative talk radio — fueled unintentionally by President Obama's calls to control exorbitant medical bills — has sparked fear among senior citizens that the health-care overhaul bill moving through Congress will lead to end-of-life "rationing" and even "euthanasia."

The controversy stems from a proposal to pay physicians who counsel elderly or terminally ill patients about what medical interventions they would prefer near the end of life and how to prepare instructions such as living wills. Under the plan, Medicare would reimburse doctors for one session every five years to confer with a patient about his or her wishes and how to ensure those preferences are followed. The counseling sessions would be voluntary.

But on right-leaning radio programs, religious e-mail lists and Internet blogs, the proposal has been described as "guiding you in how to die," "an ORDER from the Government to end your life," promoting "death care," and, in the words of anti-abortion leader Randall Terry, an attempt to "kill granny."

Although the counseling provision is a tiny sliver in a behemoth bill, the skirmish over end-of-life care, like arguments about abortion coverage, has provided ammunition to Obama's opponents and threatened to derail the president's broader health-care agenda. At a forum sponsored by the seniors' group AARP that was intended to pitch the comprehensive overhaul, Obama was asked about the frightening rumors. He used the question to promote living wills, noting that he and the first lady both have them.

The side battle also undercuts what many say is the more fundamental challenge of discussing sensitive, costly societal questions about how to align patient wishes at the end of life with financial realities, for the patient, the family and taxpayers.

"I don't think it's about cutting costs; it's about quality," said Tia Powell, director of the Montefiore-Einstein Center for Bioethics. Pointing to extensive research, she said: "The good news is, if you get people in an environment that is of their choosing, where there is support and they have good pain control, it is very likely to extend their life."

Highly charged subject

Not since 2005, when Congress and President George W. Bush became involved in the case of Terri Schiavo, who lay in a persistent vegetative state in a hospice in Florida, have lawmakers waded into the highly charged subject, said Howard Brody, director of an ethics institute at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

Betsy McCaughey, who helped defeat President Clinton's health-care overhaul 16 years ago, appears to have initiated the attacks on talk radio, telling former GOP Sen. Fred Thompson that mandatory counseling sessions with Medicare beneficiaries would "tell them how to end their life sooner" and would teach the elderly how to "decline nutrition ... and cut your life short."

House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, and GOP policy-committee Chairman Thaddeus McCotter, R-Mich., said they object to the idea because it "may start us down a treacherous path toward government-encouraged euthanasia."

Brody, however, said the proposal to reimburse counseling sessions "is an excellent idea," because too few doctors or adult children know what an elderly person wants, even sometimes when the patient has signed a medical directive.

About one-third of Americans have living wills or a document designating a health-care proxy who would make decisions if they become incapacitated, said Barbara Coombs Lee, president of Compassion & Choices, a nonprofit organization that focuses on the rights of the terminally ill. "But it's alarming how rarely they actually get honored because often doctors haven't familiarized themselves with the patient's wishes," she said.

Wesley Smith, an attorney for the International Task Force on Euthanasia, said Obama's focus on controlling the rising cost of care and legalese in the bill have contributed to the confusion. "People fear these counseling sessions will push toward less care because the point is to cut costs," he said.

The emphasis on cost containment means "you'll end up with denial of care for the elderly," said Charmaine Yoest, president of Americans for Life.

Mistaken information

In the past two weeks, AARP has fielded a few thousand calls from people who mistakenly believe the legislation would require every Medicare recipient to "choose how they want to die," said James Dau, a spokesman for the seniors' group.

Though he is "willing to give the benefit of the doubt" to some who might be confused by the discussion, Dau complained that the effort to "intentionally distort" the proposal "is just plain cruel to anyone who is forced to make one of these difficult decisions at the end of life."

The American Medical Association, which supports the provision, has received similar inquiries and protests from patients who fear doctors will begin denying care late in life.

"These are important discussions everyone should have when they are healthy ... so they are fully informed and can make their wishes known," said association President James Rohack. "That's not controversial; it's plain, old-fashioned patient-centered care."

After letting the controversy simmer on talk radio and the blogosphere, expecting that it might blow over, Democrats have begun to fight back.

The claims of mandatory counseling and euthanasia "are blatantly false," Reps. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., and Sander Levin, D-Mich., wrote colleagues. The accusations are "as offensive as they are untrue."

Right-Wing Harassment Strategy Against Dems Detailed In Memo: ‘Yell,’ ‘Stand Up And Shout Out,’ ‘Rattle Him’
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/07/31/recess-harassment-m... /

This morning, Politico reported that Democratic members of Congress are increasingly being harassed by “angry, sign-carrying mobs and disruptive behavior” at local town halls. For example, in one incident, right-wing protesters surrounded Rep. Tim Bishop (D-NY) and forced police officers to have to escort him to his car for safety.

This growing phenomenon is often marked by violence and absurdity. Recently, right-wing demonstrators hung Rep. Frank Kratovil (D-MD) in effigy outside of his office. Missing from the reporting of these stories is the fact that much of these protests are coordinated by public relations firms and lobbyists who have a stake in opposing President Obama’s reforms.

The lobbyist-run groups Americans for Prosperity and FreedomWorks, which orchestrated the anti-Obama tea parties earlier this year, are now pursuing an aggressive strategy to create an image of mass public opposition to health care and clean energy reform. A leaked memo from Bob MacGuffie, a volunteer with the FreedomWorks website Tea Party Patriots, details how members should be infiltrating town halls and harassing Democratic members of Congress:





– Artificially Inflate Your Numbers: “Spread out in the hall and try to be in the front half. The objective is to put the Rep on the defensive with your questions and follow-up. The Rep should be made to feel that a majority, and if not, a significant portion of at least the audience, opposes the socialist agenda of Washington.”

– Be Disruptive Early And Often: “You need to rock-the-boat early in the Rep’s presentation, Watch for an opportunity to yell out and challenge the Rep’s statements early.”

– Try To “Rattle Him,” Not Have An Intelligent Debate: “The goal is to rattle him, get him off his prepared script and agenda. If he says something outrageous, stand up and shout out and sit right back down. Look for these opportunities before he even takes questions.”

The memo above also resembles the talking points being distributed by FreedomWorks for pushing an anti-health reform assault all summer. Patients United, a front group maintained by Americans for Prosperity, is currently busing people all over the country for more protests against Democratic members. Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX), chairman of the NRCC, has endorsed the strategy, telling the Politico the days of civil town halls are now “over.”

Meanwhile, AHIP, the trade group and lobbying juggernaut representing the health insurance industry is sending staffers to monitor town halls and other right-wing front groups are stepping up their ad campaign to smear reform efforts. The strategy for defeating reform — recently outlined by an influential lobbyist to the Hill newspaper as “delay” then “kill” — is becoming apparent. By delaying a vote until after the August recess, lobbyists are now seizing upon recess town halls as opportunities to ambush lawmakers and fool them into believing there is wide opposition to reform.

If I were a Dem Congressman holding a town meeting I would have security at the door checking everyone's ID to make sure they really lived in the district.

It is appalling to hear what lengths lobbyist, right wing extremists and big insurance will do to stop any chance of healthcare reform. These people need to be thrown out at the first sign of disruption and called out for what they are!! :mad:

THESE NRA RIGHTWING terrorists already asssassinated a kind meek gentle doctor with God given talents.

They need to execute after trial that murderer to show this will be the result if you do it again

right now, these terrorists brag that the bullet did the trick where protests didn't

things are getting rough

and it is going to get rougher

we are now living like a 3rd world country

(btw- did they have bullet proof glass the other day at the whitehouse, and was that racist cop frisked before entering?)

time to ban ammo and guns I think.
I never met a gun that didn't do something bad.
guns kill
people with guns kill
republicans kill