Doctors Know That Rationing Medical Care Is Standard Practice - washingtonpost.com

excerpts: "The unspoken truth among doctors is that we objectively or subjectively ration care, and often don't tell patients or their families." . . . "In its broad definition, rationing is the allocation and prioritization of scarce resources. It is one of the strategies for cost containment. The paradox of rationing is that it seems fair, just and equitable, and it makes sense when applied to a population. But when it applies to my patient or my mother, it makes me uncomfortable. That said, rationing is necessary and inevitable." . . . "To put it more neutrally, we allocate health care based on patient need and the available resources. The supply of organs is limited by the number of donors, but the supply of drugs, beds and doctors depends on the choices we make as a society about how much we want to spend on each person." . . . "A deeper question for health care in America is how to best allocate limited financial resources. This requires us to be cost-effective and to be clear about who decides what is allocated." Read More