Health Care Hot Button: "Death Panels" vs. Doctor Consultations

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Critics of President Obama's health care reform say his plan would create so-called "death panels" to decide which Americans live or die. Supporters say the legislation merely ensures that Medicare will cover consultations with a doctor about end-of-life-issues. We speak with Dr. Laurel Coleman, a geriatrician and palliative care specialist, about helping patients make tough end-of-life decisions. Amity Shlaes, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, talks to us about the hypocrisy of both the Democrats and Republicans when it comes to talking about health care.

“I spend time doing these discussions and they are uniformly 100% welcomed and appreciated by families.”
—Geriatrician Laurel Coleman

Here is what the White House has to say about the so-called "death panels":

Guests:

Dr. Laurel Coleman and Amity Shlaes

Contributors:

Clancy Nolan

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