Sorry, Old Chap….
….It will just cost too much to save your life. NICE, the increasingly Orwellian advisory body to Britain's National Health Service has ruled that there is not - and will not be - a "Rule of Rescue." What does that mean? Simple, if your health care costs to much, you're a deader.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Guidelines (Nice) has ruled for the first time that saving a life cannot be justified at any cost, in a review of its ethical guidelines.
The ruling - made by the board of the controversial organisation - contradicts advice it received from its own 'Citizens Council' which offers advice from a representative sample of the general public.
Nice is facing growing criticism over the number of drugs it is now rejecting which are available throughout Europe and in America. Last week, it refused to sanction four kidney cancer drugs which can double life expectancy.
It has now rejected the so-called "rule of rescue" which stipulates that people facing death should be treated regardless of the costs. The rule is based on the natural impulse to aid individuals in trouble.
In a report on "social values judgement" the regulator says: "There is a powerful human impulse, known as the 'rule of rescue', to attempt to help an identifiable person whose life is in danger, no matter how much it costs. When there are limited resources for healthcare, applying the 'rule of rescue' may mean that other people will not be able to have the care or treatment they need.
NICE isn't, is it? This is the logical outcome of socialized medicine. The decisions of the state are final and may not be appealed. Well, actually, there is a step further that I expect the folks at NICE to reach eventually. That will be to withhold care completely from those who fail to meet some arbitrary standard they dictate.
Such as disagreeing with NICE.
Still think socialized medicine is a ginger-peachy idea? Hope you never need extraordinary care.
Bad Ideas, Medicine, World news | Gaius Tuesday, 12 August , 2008
By feeblemind, Wednesday, 13 August , 2008 @ 8:55 am
Even in the USA health care is eating up a greater percentage of GDP every year. I suspect the same questions will arise here in the next 10-15 yrs as the Boomers age. Don’t mistake my comments as endorsing the British approach. I just see a problem coming here as well. Perhaps we will learn from their mistakes. Or not.
By Sam, Wednesday, 13 August , 2008 @ 11:44 am
These sorts of pronouncements scare the willies out of me. My health is good at the moment, but in another 30 years or so, I could be in some sort of a situation like is described in the post. The thought of this mindset taking over the health care field, anywhere in the world - much less in the USA, is downright scary. I have relatives and friends that are alive today because some heavy duty medical care was done on them. They aren’t decrepit codgers drooling in their lap in a wheelchair in some nursing home either, but active, productive people.
By martian, Wednesday, 13 August , 2008 @ 11:45 am
"When there are limited resources for healthcare, applying the ‘rule of rescue’ may mean that other people will not be able to have the care or treatment they need."
So, who decides when it applies and when it doesn’t? And how much will it depend on what organs might be available for transplant if it isn’t applied? This is a veri slippery slope. If this is what Socialized Health Care means, I sure want no part of it!
By McGehee, Wednesday, 13 August , 2008 @ 2:16 pm
"So, who decides when it applies and when it doesn’t?"It will be sold, as usual, as being up to the doctors. In practice of course, as we have seen repeatedly, it’s faceless (and largely mindless) bureaucrats who will make the actual decisions. All justifiable from the procedural manual written by other faceless (and largely mindless) bureaucrats based on regulations developed by still other faceless (and largely mindless) bureaucrats — under guidance by a cadre of faceless (and largely mindless) lawyers.The doctors’ hands will be even more tied than they are now by HMOs and insurance companies.