September 9, 2014
Death Panels: Coverage for End-of-Life Talks Gaining Ground
Coverage for End-of-Life Talks Gaining Ground
Five years after it exploded into a political conflagration over “death panels,” the issue of paying doctors to talk to patients about end-of-life care is making a comeback… Bypassing the political process, private insurers have begun reimbursing doctors for these “advance care planning” conversations as interest in them rises along with the number of aging Americans.
However, now that Obamacare is law, the truth has finally emerged – death panels are indeed part of the law.
On Saturday The New York Times reported that “the issue of paying doctors to talk to patients about end-of-life care is making a comeback, and such sessions may be covered for the 50 million Americans on Medicare as early as next year.”