50% of all healthcare costs occur in the last twelve months of the patient's life.


Several years ago, I was at a medical conference in the USA where a speaker stated that 50% of all healthcare costs occur in the last twelve months of the patient's life. In the USA and Canada, this means that approximately a trillion dollars ($1,000,000,000,000.00) could be saved in the first year we decide to allow these people to die at their natural "time".

That is a rather stark fact! I suppose there are those who would argue the facts, and perhaps we could probably give up six of those months... what ever... and only save $500,000,000,000. Why are we not even discussing things like this... instead of fighting about healthcare reform?

There is a light at the end of the tunnel... it is better known as "enlightenment". We need to discuss the most effective ways to save the system money, instead of trying to bandage a "broke (en)" system. Let's have a debate about the difference between prolonging life, and prolonging death... and the difference.


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