"Don't treat the old and unhealthy, say doctors"

[Tipsy]

Doctors are calling for NHS treatment to be withheld from patients who are too old or who lead unhealthy lives.

Smokers, heavy drinkers, the obese and the elderly should be barred from receiving some operations, according to doctors, with most saying the health service cannot afford to provide free care to everyone.

Fertility treatment and "social" abortions are also on the list of procedures that many doctors say should not be funded by the state.

The findings of a survey conducted by Doctor magazine sparked a fierce row last night, with the British Medical Association and campaign groups describing the recommendations from family and hospital doctors as "out­rageous" and "disgraceful".

About one in 10 hospitals already deny some surgery to obese patients and smokers, with restrictions most common in hospitals battling debt.

Managers defend the policies because of the higher risk of complications on the operating table for unfit patients. But critics believe that patients are being denied care simply to save money.

Don't treat the old and unhealthy, say doctors - Telegraph

Though this article is about the UK, it reminds me of Dick Lamm, a guy here in the US who made statements such as "we've got a duty to die and get out of the way with all our machines and artificial hearts and everything else like that and let the other society, our kids, build a reasonable life" and "We must ask ourselves -- in a world of limited resources -- does it make sense to spend $10,000 a year to educate a child to roll over?" (second quote dealing with the handicapped).

Just wondering, does anyone actually agree with either sentiment, be it the one being discussed by doctors in the UK or the more extreme sentiment of Dick Lamm and others like him?

[x42bn6]

Er, I hate it when doctors try to play ethics, it seems wrong.

I do support something akin to a "fat tax", though. There are some idiots in the UK who waste taxpayers' money by going to hospital. Why? They are so fat, they need helicopters to take them to hospital when they fall sick.

Example of how obesity hurts others: BBC NEWS | World | Africa | Stuck woman traps SA cave group

I think a lot of the hoo-haa is down to the fact Britain is full of its drinking culture. To me, if you don't take care of yourself in the first place, you should pay for it in some way - but isn't that what hospitals are there for?

I would, however, support denying drunks access to care in non-life-threatening circumstances in lieu of something slightly less urgent, just because there are idiots in the world who are asking to be hurt.*

[Sakuhta]

I somewhat agree with some of Dick Lamm's sentiment to be honest, but the argument of Doctor magazine regarding the UK is hard to discuss in any other context considering the way the UK handles medical care on a dynamic first-come-first-serve and urgency basis.