title: Should age be a criterion for rationing health care?
abstract: The need to decrease healthcare costs is urgent. One method of decreasing costs that has been proposed is age-based rationing. With the burgeoning number of Americans over 65 comes increased spending for health care. It is thought by some that this increase represents disproportionate spending, and that the money should be spent on health care for the young. Another school of thought is that the elderly have a right to health care just as any other group. The author believes that age may have to be one consideration for allocation of resources but not the only one.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Arcangelo
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D003659:Decision Making, Organizational; D004993:Ethics, Nursing; D015276:Health Care Rationing; D006801:Humans; D010344:Patient Advocacy; D018579:Patient Selection; D040841:Resource Allocation; D028761:Withholding Treatment