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Higher end-of-life costs are associated with a less peaceful death and most particularly, in the last week of life.

When patients and doctors can have end-of-life discussions that are supportive and honest about the patient’s physical condition, the last weeks of a patient’s life can be of higher quality and cost less, this study says. (Emphasis added)

According to this story, “one in 20 Medicare patients who die each year use up almost one-third of expenditures by Medicare, the government health insurance program for the elderly and disabled.“(Emphasis added)

Reuters

“Terminally ill patients who talk over end-of-life treatments with their doctors spend less money and do not die any sooner but die more peacefully than those receiving aggressive care, researchers said on Monday.

“Patients who have the discussion tend to opt for cheaper palliative care in a hospice or at home rather than costly treatments like emergency resuscitation, ventilators to breathe for them and movement to a hospital’s intensive care unit.

“The goal of palliative care is to relieve suffering rather than to halt progression or cure the disease.

“If half of the estimated 566,000 American adult cancer patients who died in 2008 had the end-of-life discussion, the projected savings would conservatively be $77 million, according to a report published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.“(Link added to original story)

Source: Reuters, March 9, 2009

Citation Source: Archives of Internal Medicine, 2009;169(5):480-488.