Socialized Medicine is Killing People - Literally!

Socialized medicine is demonstrating to us once again its serious flaws. In the UK, it's been well publicized that often those who need an immediate MRI, or a hip or knee replacement, or even a heart procedure will have to wait years before the procedure is done, due to a lack of resources. Now it appears that the infamous NHS is removing the life support from an 86 year old man who according the The Daily Mail,

was sitting up and eating last Friday before the doctors sedated him.

If this is true, this is outrageous. The Daily Mail goes on to explain, one doctor said that Mr A had a chance of recovering and could live at home with medication to control his ailments, however a judge has decided that the man has no chance of recuperation. Furthermore, according to Mr A's son, there appears to be a policy of not giving dialysis to people over 80.

Now I do have some sympathy to the euthanasia argument for those in extreme pain or for those who have legally stated their desire to die in the event that a terrible tragedy might occur. But when judges start deciding to override some doctors, while listening to others, this can get tricky.

The NHS has a horrible reputation for care and has often been known to allocate resources to those based upon age. I seriously hope this isn't what's happening here. The Herald and Guardian have related stories. A similar story (sorry - all I have access to is first paragraph) publishes some FRIGHTENING statistics that ageism does exist in the health system in the UK. Please have a look here.