Wesley J. Smith

Some of my critics claim that I am wrong to tie what happens in the UK to Obamacare.  They are wrong.  Obamacare envisions instituting centralized cost/benefit/best practices boards that would set the standards of care, what is covered and what not, and eventually who is covered and who . . . . Continue Reading »

A blog article over at the Hastings Center opposes legislation that “scripts” what doctors must say during medical counseling. From the column by Howard Minkoff and Mary Faith Marshall, “Government-Scripted Consent: When Medical Ethics and Law Collide” . . . . Continue Reading »

Well that didn’t take long. When the Law Lords ordered the head prosecutor to create a public document stating which assisted suicides wouldn’t be prosecuted, he declared open season on the dying, frail elderly, and people with disabilities by permitting family members to assist their . . . . Continue Reading »

If you want to get to the root of just about every problem we face in America today, just look to the “experts,” whose advice did much to get us here.  Despite this, our bad case of “expertitis” shows no signs of abating.  How else explain the drive to take decision . . . . Continue Reading »

It is all so predictable. Speaker Nancy Pelosi claims she has the total budget over ten years for the House version of Obamacare “down” to $900 billion. (Remember, it is really $900 billion for seven years since the law wouldn’t go into effect until 2013).  From the . . . . Continue Reading »

A few months ago, it seemed that a big step had been taken in the development of an HIV/AIDS vaccine. Now it turns out it may not be such a big deal, after all. From the story:A deeper analysis of the results of an HIV vaccine tested in Thailand suggests that the vaccine may not have been as . . . . Continue Reading »

The UK’s rationing board NICE has urged hospitals, nursing homes, and hospices around the  UK to implement the “Liverpool Care Pathway,” under which patients supposedly near death are sedated into unconsciousness and denied food and water.  There are now indications that . . . . Continue Reading »

I have a piece in today’s NRO about the Liverpool Care Pathway, which we have discussed here previously at SHS. From my column:The United Kingdom continues to provide vivid warnings about the dangers of centralized health-care planning — a real possibility under Obamacare. Within the last . . . . Continue Reading »

President Obama swore an oath to “faithfully execute the office of President of the United States.” The POTUS is also known as the chief magistrate, whose job it is to enforce federal law.  But now, Obama’s Justice Department has told federal prosecutors that they should not . . . . Continue Reading »

The doctor who implanted six embryos in the Octomom, leading to eight births (two of the embryos twinned), has been kicked out of a voluntary medical society. From the story:Dr Michael Kamrava, the doctor who gave fertility treatment to “Octomom” Nadya Suleman has been expelled from the . . . . Continue Reading »