Shouldn’t we know?
When it comes to providing care for our parents, anyone can agree that they deserve to have all the information about aging, despite any social stigma this information may carry. Virginia Senator Mark Warner is campaigning for this exact kind of distribution. It is our responsibility as their children to make sure they have the tools to age in their own interest.
Senator Warner has experienced these trials himself. “I know firsthand how tough this can be on patients and their families: My mother suffers with late-stage Alzheimer’s disease. When she was first diagnosed with this cruel disease almost a decade ago, my family missed the opportunity to talk frankly and honestly with my mother and her health care providers about her care options. We did not discuss living wills, or advanced care directives.” After realizing how this lack of information affected his mother’s situation, the senator decided to make some changes.
In bill S.1263, the Senior Navigation and Planning Act of 2009, the senator makes provisions to facilitate discussion about care options, treatment settings, and end-stage care planning. The bill helps Medicare beneficiaries and their families to plan their transition into senior life and work with the complex healthcare system. When it comes to palliative care, it provides access to hospice expertise and other care planning services, focusing on assisting those in critical stages of their life, that is, those who have a life expectancy of 18 months. With this expertise, seniors can make educated decisions about their final days.
Warner wants to be clear: “This legislation does not in any way deny or limit health care services… By enacting these reforms, we will begin to develop a culture in which all of us will have the ability to age well, with dignity, in the setting of our choosing.”
