The BBC presenter Kristian Digby has been found dead at his home. He was 32 years old. Police have revealed that he was dead when paramedics arrived and that the cause of death was “unexplained”.
Digby was a homosexual and people are awaiting new…
The death of Michael has affected a lot of family and friends but who knew what his death would mean to fragile singer, Britney Spears.
According to The New York Tims, Britney stated that she had felt the cold dead hands on her usually naked botto…
The Los Angeles Coroner’s office released the final photos and official death certificate for the late pop star, Michael Jackson.
Jackson, age 53, was found dead in his Los Angeles mansion on July 8th after attempts by his personal physician to re…
WASHINGTON — It’s alive.
The Medicare end-of-life planning provision that 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin said was tantamount to “death panels” for seniors is staying in the latest Democratic health care bill unveiled Thursday.
The provision allows Medicare to pay for voluntary counseling to help beneficiaries deal with the complex and painful decisions families face when a loved one is approaching death.
For years, federal laws and policies have encouraged Americans to think ahead about end-of-life decisions, and make their wishes known in advance through living wills and similar legal documents. But when House Democrats proposed this summer to pay doctors for end-of-life counseling, it touched off a wave of suspicion and anger. Prominent Republicans singled it out as a glaring example of government overreach.
Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, at the time a lead negotiator on health care legislation, told constituents at a town hall meeting they had good reason to question the proposal.
“I don’t have any problem with things like living wills, but they ought to be done within the family,” he said. “We should not have a government program that determines you’re going to pull the plug on grandma.”
Thursday, the sponsor of the provision said the barrage of criticism may have actually helped.
“There is nothing more basic than giving someone the option of speaking with their doctor about how they want to be treated in the case of an emergency,” said Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore. “I think the outrageous and vindictive attacks may have backfired to help raise awareness about this problem, which is why it’s been kept in the bill.”
The legislation would allow Medicare to pay for a counseling session with a doctor or clinical professional once every five years. The bill calls for such sessions to be “completely” voluntary, and prohibits the encouragement or promotion of suicide or assisted suicide.
The counseling provision is supported by doctors’ groups and AARP, the seniors’ lobby. It was not included in health care bills passed by two Senate committees.
Call it what you will, death creeping in, 7 year itch, a need to stay young, a old thespian not willing to die. I don’t know what drove me to pursue Improv at my age…now I say that and I haven’t even told you the reader how old I am. On December 5th of 2009 I will be 45 years old.
Nowadays it seems that 30 is the new 20, 40 is the new 30…but where the hell am I?? Respectfully I would say I am half way there! I know that might come as a rather dark or morose phrase to use, but let’s face it, most of our elderly start to wind down that slippery slope towards death in their mid 90’s nowadays.
You also have to understand that I have always been a bit of a late bloomer. While most kids were driving at 16 I waited till the summer of my 17th year to take a drivers ed course through my high school. I finished my 2 year Associates Degree in Electronic and Computer Technologies when most others were graduating college with 4 year Bachelor Degrees.
On my 30th birthday I decided that I would enjoy learning Magic and I can say that in the 15 years since I have learned and performed a lot but I am always learning new things. What will the next 15 years bring? If I was that good of a Mentalist I could tell ya.
But why IMPROV?? I don’t really have an answer…as a good Improvist, I should, but I am still learning this too!
If you have enjoyed my rambling let me know…I would like to hear what you think about your life too.
Mindfully
John Sergott, Jr.
