Posted By cmbuuck on February 12, 2013
“Simple morality dictates that unless and until someone can prove the unborn human is not alive, we must give it the benefit of the doubt and assume it is (alive). And, thus, it should be entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” – Ronald Reagan 1982
Please pray for a culture of life in America. Pray that one by one, family by family, women and men will say No to abortion.
Deaf Twins Going Blind Euthanized
by Russell Goldman, ABC News – Mon, Jan 14, 2013
Deaf twin brothers in Belgium were euthanized by their doctor after realizing they were going blind and would be unable to see each other ever again, their physician says.
The 45-year-old men, whose names have not been made public, were legally put to death by lethal injection at the Brussels University Hospital in Jette, on Dec. 14.
The men, who were born deaf, had a cup of coffee and said goodbye to other family members before walking into the hospital room together to die, their doctor told Belgian television station RTL.
“They were very happy. It was a relief to see the end of their suffering,” said Dr. David Dufour.
“They had a cup of coffee in the hall. It went well and a rich conversation. Then the separation from their parents and brother was very
serene and beautiful,” he said. “At the last, there was a little wave of their hands, and, then they were gone,”
More than 1,000 people legally availed themselves of doctor-assisted deaths in Belgium in 2011. Most of them were terminally ill cancer patients.
The brothers are unique in that their illness was not terminal. Belgian law, however, allows doctors to euthanize “suffering” patients who are both mentally sound, over 18 and want to die.
Belgian lawmakers are considering a law that would extend euthanasia to dementia patients and children, whose families and doctors consented.
Cutting Costs, Risking Lives
by Linda Chavez, Sunday, January 13, 2013
Obamacare promised access to health care to millions of Americans who lacked it, with the president personally promising those who had health care that they liked that they wouldn’t be forced to change. Magically, all of this was supposed to be accompanied by lower premiums for those already insured and (overall savings in the health care system to decrease).
But as the program swings into full gear, it is becoming apparent those promises can’t be kept — at least not without major intrusion into health care decisions that affect patients. One of the only ways to save money is to restrict access to more costly treatments, which is exactly what the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), a public-private organization set up by the Affordable Care Act, is meant to do. The PCORI recommends lower reimbursement for drugs and treatments that ostensibly are not research-based.
Unfortunately, even the new rules don’t deliver as anticipated. Instead of basing health care decisions on evidence-based research, the government is pushing providers to cut costlier treatments, even if there isn’t a good empirically researched reason for doing so. And the results could end up costing more money as patients denied certain treatments become sicker and harder to serve.
A group of patients whose lives may be endangered by this shift are among the most vulnerable: premature babies. Babies born before 37 weeks of pregnancy are at increased risk for many health complications, and among the most dangerous are respiratory diseases. These tiny babies’ lungs are more susceptible to serious infections from common childhood diseases like RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), and the consequences from infection can be much more dangerous.Despite this, the American Academy of Pediatrics has adopted new recommendations on RSV prevention for preemies that seem more focused on cost-cutting than good patient care.
There is no vaccine to prevent RSV infections, but there has been one treatment available proven to work well to lessen the chances of infection for premature babies. A drug called Synagis has been shown in studies to reduce the risk of hospitalization from RSV in babies born prematurely, if it is administered prophylactically during the RSV season. But the drug is expensive — according to the Wall Street Journal, about $6000 for five intramuscular inoculations. The AAP has now recommended that the drug be injected less frequently and to a smaller group of premature infants in the interests of cutting health care costs.
As a result, many insurance companies won’t pay for prevention beyond the lower recommendations, nor will government-provided health care programs.
Everyone would like to see costs go down in health care. But cutting costs can also mean shortening lives. Even when denial of preventive treatment doesn’t end with the patient dying, it still may be a failure at cutting costs. According to one study, hospitalizations for RSV were reduced by 50 percent with the administration of Synagis — and one day in the hospital costs
considerably more than a full course of preventive treatment.
The AAP recommendations on preventive RSV treatments — which were reissued last year, without any new research to back them up — are a glimpse into the future of health care under the Affordable Care Act. The only way to cut costs is through some system of rationing. This year’s victims may be premature babies, but eventually all of us will end up with less care than we want — and in many
cases need.
Linda Chavez is the author of “An Unlikely Conservative: The Transformation of an Ex-Liberal.” To find out more about Linda Chavez, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.
THANKS GOV. DANIEL’S, FOR YEARS OF SERVICE TO INDIANA
NEWS RELEASE January 7,2013
Contact:Becky Rogness (beckyrogness@protectinglife.com)
INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana Right to Life President and CEO, Mike Fichter, released the following statement thanking outgoing governor, Mitch Daniels, for his eight years of service to Indiana.
“We give Gov. Daniels our thanks as he concludes his governorship of Indiana,” said Fichter. “During Gov. Daniels’ time in office, the Indiana abortion rate has dropped nearly 15 percent. We know there are Hoosier children alive today because of the pro-life policies enacted under the Daniels administration.
“The most significant pro-life advance during Gov. Daniels’ term came in 2011 when a comprehensive pro-life bill passed the Indiana General Assembly and received the governor’s signature. That historic legislation included improvements to the type of information given to women seeking abortions, required abortion doctors to have local hospital admitting privileges and defunded Indiana’s largest abortion provider, Planned Parenthood.
“Gov. Daniels also deserves recognition for resisting pro-abortion Obamacare from taking effect in Indiana. In November, Gov. Daniels notified the federal government of incoming Gov.-elect Mike Pence’s opposition to a state-run health insurance exchange. We thank Gov. Daniels for his role in opposing Obamacare.
“Indiana is now nationally recognized as one of the top 10 pro-life states in the country, and other states are following our lead. We thank Gov. Daniels for serving Indiana and we wish him the best in future endeavors.”
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