Death Panels
Myth 2: Obamacare will introduce "death panels" that will severely ration care and will force elderly patients to commit suicide or submit to euthanasia.
Reality: Introduced by Sarah Palin in 2009, the idea that health care reform will lead to euthanasia is one of the most persistent lies myths surrounding Obamacare. There have been several versions of this claim; the most recent is that the Independent Payment Advisory Board will ration care and will make end-of-life decisions for patients.
In truth, the IPAB is basically powerless. It will make health care policy recommendations to Congress, which will then have the ability to pass or reject those suggestions. The president, in turn, will have the power to veto Congress' decisions -- as he can with any other piece of legislation.
Ironically, death panels already existed before health care reform -- but they were run by your insurance company. Insurers have regularly denied coverage for pre-existing conditions, canceled policies on sick patients, refused to pay for vital, life-saving operations, and otherwise made financially-based decisions about who would get to live and who would be left to die.
According to one congressional report, three insurance companies -- UnitedHealth (UNH), WellPoint (WLP) and Assurant (AIZ) -- saved $300 million by canceling policies on over 20,000 sick people over a five-year period. The new health care law will make many of these practices illegal. In other words, rather than creating death panels, Obamacare will actually abolish them.
