The "death panels" are not the same thing as end of life planning. It as well is not they same as medicare/medicaid paying for hospice if needed. The payment of docs to have conversations on end of the life planning may encourage at the very least more people to give up on life. It's out of the senate bill for now. That's a good thing. It would have been a reminder, every five years, that it might be better to just die quietly. Nothing wrong with dieing quietly, but do we need a reminder?
How does that conversation go. Your fine there is nothing wrong, but if something does go wrong your need to have something in place. A will and advance directive... and so on. If you get sick though you need to think about at what point do you want to give up on living? You can go to the hospital and try to get better or go into hospice? You can't have tubes, IVs and be poked and prodded or you can be left alone and just given pain killers? Do you want to put your family though all the worries of you in a hospital and see your that way or give them time to quietly say good bye and to help them begin to deal with your death?
How do you give the equal weight? Not to make light but does it make hospice seem the easy way out? How hard do you fight when "give up at any time, its easier" is drummed into your head. It seems there you only want to bring all that up if there isn't a reasonable expectation of getting well. They say its out so I'll leave it.
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