End of life counseling was funded in the GOP Medicare Prescription Drug Bill

[deminks]

http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2009/08/13/oh-those-death-panels/

Oh, Those Death Panels

You would think that if Republicans wanted to totally mischaracterize a health care provision and demagogue it like nobody's business, they would at least pick something that the vast majority of them hadn't already voted for just a few years earlier. Because that's not just shameless, it's stupid.

Yes, that's right. Remember the 2003 Medicare prescription drug bill, the one that passed with the votes of 204 GOP House members and 42 GOP Senators? Anyone want to guess what it provided funding for? Did you say counseling for end-of-life issues and care? Ding ding ding!!

Let's go to the bill text, shall we? "The covered services are: evaluating the beneficiary's need for pain and symptom management, including the individual's need for hospice care; counseling the beneficiary with respect to end-of-life issues and care options, and advising the beneficiary regarding advanced care planning." The only difference between the 2003 provision and the infamous Section 1233 that threatens the very future and moral sanctity of the Republic is that the first applied only to terminally ill patients. Section 1233 would expand funding so that people could voluntarily receive counseling before they become terminally ill.

(end snip)

Gotcha!

emphasis mine

[loyalkydem]

1. oops

My how quickly they forget history.

[Crunchy Frog]

2. They know it doesn't matter.

Americans have the attention span of a guppie.

[atreides1]

4. Hey

What do you have against guppies?

[rwork]

3. Send this

To Keith and Rachael fast.

[deminks]

5. done