In an ideal world we would all get the treatment we need to live as healthily and as long as possible. But in the real world we have limited resources and people are being denied treatments that would prolong their life.
It’s not just happening in poor countries. The UK has a National Health Service which promises to provide free and equal health care for all, yet healthcare providers are admitting that age rationing occurs. And the same dilemmas are being faced elsewhere.
Age discrimination is happening unintentionally. When you want to do as much good as possible with the resources you have, someone over 85 misses out on treatment that would extend their life because it would buy them less extra time than it would for a younger person.
I just watched a documentary called ‘The Price of Life’ in which a woman was given a drug which dramatically reduced the effects of her cancer. Her daily life went from being almost unbearable to being positively enjoyable. Since the drug was already working for her it was likely to increase her life expectancy if she continued taking it.
But it was part of a drug trial and she was not allowed to continue receiving the treatment when the experiment finished. Even though the drug trial had been successful it was considered too expensive for the NHS to provide. After long deliberation the NHS can now prescribe the drug, but in the time they took to decide, the woman was put on less effective drugs and died after suffering complications.
We can eat healthily, take exercise and not smoke, but when we live longer we still might get sick. Then even if there is a cure our life could be determined by a cost-benefit analysis which decides we’re not worth the expense.
Suddenly, comprehensive health insurance looks very attractive.
