Socialized Medicine: What’s The Cost In Saving A Life?

Apparently, it is too much $$$, as we seen in this preview of how the whole socialized medicine/treatment/insurance system can look, rather then just this bit prior to it coming full bore (h/t Van Helsing)

Last week the Medicare trustees reported that the program has an “unfunded liability” of nearly $38 trillion — which is the amount of benefits promised but not covered by taxes over the next 75 years. So Democrats have decided that the way to close this gap is to create a new “universal” health insurance entitlement for the middle class.

Such thinking may be a non sequitur, but it will have drastic effects on the health care of all Americans — and as it happens, this future is playing out in miniature in Medicare right now. Desperate to prevent medical costs from engulfing the federal budget, the program’s central planners decided last week to deny payment for a new version of one of life’s most unpleasant routine procedures, the colonoscopy. This is a preview of how health care will be rationed when Democrats get their way.

At issue are “virtual colonoscopies,” or CT scans of the abdomen. Colon cancer is the second leading cause of U.S. cancer death but one of the most preventable. Found early, the cure rate is 93%, but only 8% at later stages. Virtual colonoscopies are likely to boost screenings because they are quicker, more comfortable and significantly cheaper than the standard “optical” procedure, which involves anesthesia and threading an endoscope through the lower intestine.

Second leading cause of US cancer death, yet, as Van points out, Los Federales can save $$$ by making sure people are diagnosed to be in the 8% group, rather then the one that will survive. And, as we have seen in countries that have socialized health care systems in place, those who are dying will not get much in the way of service. In governments mind, why waste money on terminally ill subjects who are no longer productive members of the proletariat?

Doesn’t it sound great to have government bean counters in charge of your health?

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5 Responses to “Socialized Medicine: What’s The Cost In Saving A Life?”

  1. Lynn Comp says:

    Agree with you – AND – if you look at the description of ‘pragmatism’ (our President is just being pragmatic when he does all this stuff….) it gets to be downright scary. What I really would like to know is what is absolutely OFF the table in terms of human life and what is ON the table? If Obama cannot clearly answer in absolutes but instead answers upon a case by case basis, and we end up with some wacky algorithm that determines “useful life vs cost of procedure” or “citizen productivity potential vs cost of procedure” it will be very creepy very fast…

  2. John Ryan says:

    every other industrialized country Germany Switzerland etc has a national health plan that they are happy with. There health costs are lower than ours as 25% of our health dollar goes for profit and administration. As you can easily see, the American Mediacal Association, made up entirely of doctors, supports Obama’s plans. Who is the leading opponent ? The health insurance agency is the main opponent. Teach who would you rather have in charge of your health a bean counter working for the United States government ? or a bean counter working for a private company that is motivated solely by its bottom line ?

  3. John Ryan says:

    every other industrialized country Germany Switzerland etc has a national health plan that they are happy with. There health costs are lower than ours as 25% of our health dollar goes for profit and administration. As you can easily see, the American Mediacal Association, made up entirely of doctors, supports Obama’s plans. Who is the leading opponent ? The health insurance agency is the main opponent. Teach who would you rather have in charge of your health a bean counter working for the United States government ? or a bean counter working for a private company that is motivated solely by its bottom line ?

  4. John Ryan says:

    Teach here is a link showing that the largest group of American doctors the AMA support Obama’s plan Teach whom do you think has the best interests of Americans in their hearts, the AMA or the health insurance companies ? http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/no-index/news-events/obama-health-system-reform.shtml

  5. John Ryan says:

    Teach here is a link showing that the largest group of American doctors the AMA support Obama’s plan Teach whom do you think has the best interests of Americans in their hearts, the AMA or the health insurance companies ? http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/no-index/news-events/obama-health-system-reform.shtml

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