One of the uglier and most misleading statements to come out of the debates over health care reform has been the contention that the current House bill would enact a “death panel” that would decide who would and would not receive health care.  Others have said the bill requires Medicare recipients to receive end-of-life counseling that will encourage assisted suicide and euthanasia.

Such ridiculous accusations would be laughable if the issue of end-of-life care was not so serious and misunderstood.

What the bill actually does is, for the first time, authorize Medicare to pay physicians when they provide end-of-life counseling at the request of a Medicare patient.

Along with health care providers, consumer organizations and groups representing senior citizens support this provision because it will encourage people to think and do something about end-of-life care, like drafting a living will or issuing a durable power of attorney.  By bringing physicians into the discussion and process, it’s more likely that a patient’s wishes will be respected.

Advance directives – living wills and durable power of attorney – are important to hospitals because they can determine the course of care for a seriously ill or injured patient.  To help patients, their families and their physicians, IHA has joined with the Iowa Medical Society and Iowa State Bar Association to distribute brochures on advance directives to hospitals across the state.

In fact, hospitals are required by the federal government to ask adult patients if they have advance directives and to provide assistance in drafting advance directives if a patient desires.  That requirement was created under federal law nearly 20 years ago.