Palin: Obama 'Misleading' Public on Proposed End-of-Life Care

From FOXNEWS.COM

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Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said President Obama is "misleading" the public about his health plan that she says would create a "death panel" to deny care to the neediest Americans.

In a Facebook posting Wednesday evening, she also said Obama is making light of concerns over the end-of-life counseling proposed in the Democratic-sponsored health care plan, and that the branding of the counseling as "voluntary" isn't so cut and dried.

A health care bill passed by three House committees allows Medicare to reimburse doctors for counseling sessions about end-of-life decisions. But critics have claimed the provision could lead to death panels and euthanasia for seniors.

Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, said in a statement Thursday that the provision had been dropped from the Senate version now under consideration because it could be misinterpreted or implemented incorrectly.

Obama on Tuesday said the Democratic health care legislation would not create "death panels" to deny care to frail seniors -- or "basically pull the plug on grandma because we decided that it's too expensive to let her live anymore," as the president put it.

Rather, Obama contended the provision that led to such talk would only authorize Medicare to pay doctors for counseling patients about end-of-life care if they want it.

But Palin, the former Republican vice presidential candidate, wrote that the provision reads otherwise and will lead to health care rationing.

"With all due respect, it's misleading for the president to describe this section as an entirely voluntary provision that simply increases the information offered to Medicare recipients," she wrote. "The issue is the context in which that information is provided and the coercive effect these consultations will have in that context."

Palin cited one section of the bill that says if a patient has a change in health condition or moves to a nursing facility or hospice then practioners must explain the end of care options that the government will pay.

"Now put this in context. ... the consultations "are part of a bill whose stated purpose is 'to reduce the growth in health care spending.' Is it any wonder that senior citizens might view such consultations as attempts to convince them to help reduce health care costs by accepting minimal end-of-life care?" she asked.

Palin also referred to Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, the brother of White House Chief of Staff Rahmn Emanuel, who wrote that some medical services should be provided on a "priority curve on which individuals aged between roughly 15 and 40 years get the most chance, whereas the youngest and oldest people get chances that are attenuated."

"President Obama can try to gloss over the effects of government authorized end-of-life consultations, but the views of one of his top health care advisers are clear enough," she wrote.

"It's all just more evidence that the Democratic legislative proposals will lead to health care rationing, and more evidence that the top-down plans of government bureaucrats will never result in real health care reform," Palin wrote.

Okay, she hit the nail on the head here. I've always been a fan of Sarah Palin, and this is great.

First of all, of course Obama is being misleading us. I mean, who really wants to hear that their Grandmas are done for? And who wants to know that the government is behind it under the guise of "less expensive healthcare" and doesn't care that they're rationing off PEOPLE?

I sure don't want to hear that.

The healthcare bill will definitely lead to euthanasia for seniors. It's basically like abortion (which Obama supports), in that it involves deciding whether someone is worth keeping around.

Obama insists that the end-of-life counseling would be voluntary, but, as usual, that claim is shown to be false. Palin wrote that it would lead to rationing, which is just a fancy way of saying "killing off the 'worthless' ones".

Basically, as soon as a patient exhibits a change in condition, or moves to a nursing facility or hospice, oh, look, they suddenly have the marvelous option to act for the greater good and cease in their pitiful, pathetic, time and money consuming existence. What a respectable sacrifice. Right.

And is this really a stretch at all since the bill is supposed to reduce healthcare spending?

And Dr. Ezekiel Emmanuel talks about a priority curve?!?!? Priorities? These are humans! We are all equal! Need I once again cite the Declaration on another life issue? We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these rights are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

UNALIENABLE RIGHTS TO LIFE FOR ALL! It seems to me like the Liberals are doing all they can to 1) bring socialism to America and 2) to discriminate against people for age (e.g. unborn/elderly).

I don't think they really care about the health of America.

Both physical and financial.

Check out this YouTube video exposing the truth about Obama's healthcare plan: that the "public option" would eliminate private insurance.