Thursday, August 13, 2009

End of Life Counseling

I have been hearing that there is end of life counseling and that there is not end of life counseling in the H.R. Bill so I looked. Page 426 line 5 is the first time the phrase "end-of-life" is used.

pg. 426
4. (E)"As an exlanation by the practitioner of the
5. continuum of end-of-life services and supports avail-
6. able, including palliative care and hospice, and bene-
7. fits for surch services and supports that are available
8. under this title.
9. (F) Subject to clause (ii), an explanation of
10. orders regarding life sustaining treatment or similiar
11. orders, which shall include -
12. "(I) the reasons why the development of
13. such an order is beneficial to the individual and
14. the individual's family and the reasons why
15. such an order shoud be updated periodically as
16. the health of the individual changes;
17. (II) the information needed for an indi-
18. vidual or legal surrogate to make informed deci-
19. sions regarding the completion of such an
20. order; and
21. "(III) the identification of resources that
22. an individual may use to determine the require-
23. ments of the State in which such individual re-
24. sides so that the treatment wishes of that indi-
25. vidual will be carried out if the individual in un-
pg27
1. able to communicate those wishes, including re-
2. quirements regarding the designation of a sur-
3. rogate decisionmaker (also known as a health
4. care proxy)

and on and on and on it goes.

0 comments: