Perhaps you have seen the video of the outspoken candidate for US President who raised the issue of someone who has made the decision not to buy health insurance and then, at age 30, becomes sick and will die without medical care. And perhaps you heard his audience response? See Krugman link.
People make economic decisions which affect health care for a variety of reasons, including their inability to pay for what they need. But one of the reasons that people make "bad" decisions is their own health. Cancer may be associated with severe depression which makes a person incapable of making a rational decision on every day things, such as purchasing health insurance. Brain trauma, brain tumors, brain infections, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, metabolic disorders such as Wilson's disease - all may be associated with inappropriate decision making.
The solution - in America - is not to throw these people (or their family members, including their children) onto the junk pile for easy disposal. It is finding the compassion and common sense to treat them humanely and appropriately. It is surprising for someone from a medical family to miss this obvious point. What else is he missing - and is there some medical reason for his missing it?
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3 comments:
I don't think you characterize what Ron Paul said accurately. And suggesting he said what he said is due to illness on Paul's part is ad hominem and has no basis. What Paul actually said:
BLITZER: ....A healthy 30-year-old young man has a good job, makes a good living, but decides, you know what? I'm not going to spend $200 or $300 a month for health insurance
because I'm healthy, I don't need it. But something terrible happens, all of a sudden he needs it....
[other comments]
BLITZER: But Congressman, are you saying that society should just let him die?
PAUL: No. I practiced medicine before we had Medicaid, in the early 1960s, when I got out of medical school. I practiced at Santa Rosa Hospital in San Antonio, and the churches took care of them. We never turned anybody away from the hospitals.
--LCB--
Is a man, who evinces no evidence of compassion, whole?
Paul: "...we never turned anybody away from the hospitals". I disagreed with your characterization of what Paul said during the debate, not defend his the level of his personal compassion. I don't know the level of his personal compassion.
I hope that no one, particularly HPK, takes my first comment to be a criticism of this blog. I greatly appreciate the important health issues and health facts presented by this blog
--LCB--
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