Jay Rockefeller: “death is by no means an easy subject to talk about; nonetheless, end-of-life care continues to be a controversial topic…”

“death is by no means an easy subject to talk about; nonetheless, end-of-life care continues to be a controversial topic that must be addressed. Today, I am introducing three bills that I hope will go a long way to improve end-of-life care in this country. Senator Susan Collins and I are reintroducing our Advance Planning and Compassionate Care Act, comprehensive legislation that would ensure that patients' final wishes for end-of-life care are known, respected, and complied with. This legislation has been introduced in each Congress since the 105th Congress. I am hopeful that we will be able to move it this year. I am also introducing the Medicare End-of-Life Care Planning Act with Senators Lugar and Bill Nelson. This important bill is based on an amendment that I introduced during the Finance Committee's consideration of the Deficit Reduction Act in 2005. It would require physician consultation regarding advance directives during the initial 'Welcome to Medicare' physician visit. An end-of-life care consultation during a Medicare recipient's first contact with the program would emphasize the importance of advance planning and give him or her the tools necessary to understand advance directives, the Medicare hospice benefit, and other end-of-life care concerns. Having such a benefit in Medicare would undoubtedly improve patient care and quality at the end-of-life.”