Warren Buffett says health care costs are a bigger problem than corporate taxes

Re:Warren Buffett says health care costs are a bigger proble... by rcarrigan87 on Tuesday May 09, 2017 @08:53AM (#14299537)

Keeping people alive too long is definitely a really difficult problem. Having walked through many dementia floors in nursing homes, I'd prefer to have some reasonable way of opting for assisted suicide in my will. Maybe once a consortium of doctors verifies I'm at a specified stage of dementia. Assisted suicide is another tricky area but I think it is humane when administered properly.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Warren Buffett says health care costs are a bigger proble... by cloverich on Tuesday May 09, 2017 @08:57AM (#14299567)

Alternatively, we could consider a more strict "No heroic efforts" for people with dementia -- which means not spending tens to hundreds of thousands on resuscitation or surgical procedures for people with dementia if they are not in pain from their current ailment. Its obviously nuanced, but there is a hugely significant amount of savings to be made if we can get over the political obstacles.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Warren Buffett says health care costs are a bigger proble... by rcarrigan87 on Tuesday May 09, 2017 @09:08AM (#14299641)

Physical rehab has some of the highest Medicaid/care reimbursement rates and you should see how many dementia patients are getting pointless "rehab" to the maximum a facility can bill.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Warren Buffett says health care costs are a bigger proble... by mason240 on Tuesday May 09, 2017 @11:05AM (#14300632)

It's getting more common to get a DNR/DNI (Do Not Resuscitate / Do Not Intubate ) put into a "living will" that goes to into effect if you are in a situation where you will no longer be mentally cognitive.

[ Parent | on HN ]