That is government provided "free" health care, coming to your neighborhood as universal health care.

Oh, please. The woman has a poor prognosis in any event and is on Medicaid, i.e. she's already in taxpayer-funded health care. Oregon taxpayers have long-since overwhelmingly approved the concept of explicit health care rationing for Medicaid patients ... triage is the essence of the "Oregon Health Plan" ... and we are not willing to pay for expensive treatments of questionable efficacy. $4000 buys a lot of primary health care for our state's poor.

We could just leave it at that and let this unfortunate woman die a miserable death, but she does have the option of "Death with Dignity". Her choice, and we taxpayers will foot the bill.

To the extent that we choose to make health care a politically-rationed service, this is all quite reasonable and compassionate.

Precisely, once you decide that you get to determine some lives aren't worthwhile the victims should shut up and let you kill them.

It is the easiest way to deal with social security, isn't it?

"You've lived long enough, off with you."

Reminds me of Monty Python:

Bring out your dead!
CUSTOMER: Here's one.
CART-MASTER: Ninepence.
DEAD PERSON: I'm not dead!
CART-MASTER: What?
CUSTOMER: Nothing. Here's your ninepence.
DEAD PERSON: I'm not dead!
CART-MASTER: 'Ere. He says he's not dead!
CUSTOMER: Yes he is.
DEAD PERSON: I'm not!
CART-MASTER: He isn't?
CUSTOMER: Well, he will be soon. He's very ill.
DEAD PERSON: I'm getting better!
CUSTOMER: No you're not. You'll be stone dead in a moment.
CART-MASTER: Oh, I can't take him like that. It's against regulations.
DEAD PERSON: I don't want to go on the cart!
CUSTOMER: Oh, don't be such a baby.
CART-MASTER: I can't take him.
DEAD PERSON: I feel fine!
CUSTOMER: Well, do us a favor.
CART-MASTER: I can't.
CUSTOMER: Well, can you hang around a couple of minutes? He won't be long.
CART-MASTER: No, I've got to go to the Robinson's. They've lost nine today.
CUSTOMER: Well, when's your next round?
CART-MASTER: Thursday.
DEAD PERSON: I think I'll go for a walk.
CUSTOMER: You're not fooling anyone you know. Look, isn't there something
you can do?
DEAD PERSON: [singing] I feel happy... I feel happy.
[whop]
CUSTOMER: Ah, thanks very much.
CART-MASTER: Not at all. See you on Thursday.
CUSTOMER: Right. All right.

No, the easiest way is to raise the retirement age back to the average mortality age, where it began.

http://reason.com/blog/show/127873.html

Should authorities pull the plug on Janet Rivera, a woman who has been comatose for a couple of years in a Fresno, Calif. special care facility? In mid-July, Rivera's court-appointed conservator, on the advice of five physicians, asked that her respirator be removed and food and water be withheld.

Rivera's medical bills are being paid by Medi-Cal, the state-federal insurance program for low-income families.

As a taxpayer (someone who involuntarily funds Medicaid), I expect some responsible party to cap my costs. The cost/benefit calculation here is not reassuring.

And if you find that heartless or otherwise unacceptable, then get me off the hook for funding her treatment.

The state can be heartless. Indeed, it ALWAYS will be, because this woman is just one. She has to rely on the state, it wants her to go away.

$4000 a month is not a lot of money. What kind of 'triage' do they have in Oregon? What about neo-natal care, which is probably more on the order of $4000 a day (or more), not counting the downstream costs of caring for a severely damaged growing child? What about dialysis, which is more than $4000 a month? What about stem-cell therapies for diseases like multiple myeloma? That has to be at least $100,000 for the patient, just to try and secure another 4 or 5 years.

Also, where are the compassionate Democrats? They claim to oppose this sort of thing, but I'd like to see Obama answer a question about this in a debate. He might actually utter more "uuhs" than real words.

Ah, the hooks of love. Indeed a heavy burden to bear. But not too heavy.