Obama orders same-sex hospital visits

[LumbergTech]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36580493/ns/us_news-washington_post

President Obama on Thursday signed a memorandum requiring hospitals to allow gays and lesbians to have non-family visitors and to grant their partners medical power of attorney.
....
An official said the new rule will affect any hospital that receives Medicare or Medicaid funding.


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about time something like this happened, i know the usual suspects will cry foul for various reasons

 

[Jhhnn]

Good.

 

[nageov3t]

ahha! I wondered why the rivers were boiling and the sky had turned red while I was driving home tonight.

 

[spidey07]

Keep pissing off the coutry. Keep it up fucker.

 

[nageov3t]

Keep pissing off the coutry. Keep it up fucker.

yeah, jesus... people allowed to visit their loved ones in hospitals, America is going to be outraged.

 

[IronWing]

Keep pissing off the coutry. Keep it up fucker.

Please explain why this pisses you off.

 

[Brainonska511]

Keep pissing off the coutry. Keep it up fucker.

 

[nakedfrog]

Keep pissing off the coutry. Keep it up fucker.

PRO-GAY AGENDA! STUPID GAYS ALL TRYING TO ACT LIKE IT'S OKAY TO BE GAY! IT MAKES ME SO MAAAAD!

 

[WHAMPOM]

Please explain why this pisses you off.

Who can explain insanity but the insane. Hay anyone seen Moony?

 

[ShawnD1]

yeah, jesus... people allowed to visit their loved ones in hospitals, America is going to be outraged.

We should round up gays and kill all of them. Everyone knows this.

Wait a second. wtf? No, we should probably let gay people see their loved ones. wtf is wrong with you, spiderman?

 

[shiner]

So how is this going to jive with the HIPAA regs?

 

[cliftonite]

PRO-GAY AGENDA! STUPID GAYS ALL TRYING TO ACT LIKE IT'S OKAY TO BE GAY! IT MAKES ME SO MAAAAD!

My sarcasm meter seems to be malfunctioning here. Are you serious?

 

[ProfJohn]

Ah!!! Obama has done something I agree with.... if this keeps up I might have to start liking the guy...

 

[Fenixgoon]

how do memorandums work in the legal sense? i.e, shouldn't congress make a bill and then the president sign it into law? or does it fall under DHHS rules that the president is signing into effect?

i understand executive orders - the president is the boss of all federal employees and the military.

nonetheless, a step in the right direction.

 

[MotF Bane]

Keep pissing off the coutry. Keep it up fucker.

Are you insane?

 

[nakedfrog]

My sarcasm meter seems to be malfunctioning here. Are you serious?

What, are you suggesting that it's okay for gay people to be allowed to have the person they'd marry (if it were legal) visit them in the hospital when they're dying of cancer? That would totally invalidate heterosexual marriage! And God would probably come stomping down from heaven and kick all our asses! Then he'd set us on fire!

 

[Lemon law]

As a hetro sexual male married to a hetro sexual female, I endorse the concept of marriage that carries with it social stability and at the same time carries with it a powerful set of legal rights and obligations. And one of those rights is hospital visitation rights.

Whoopie, my wife and I are in the 96% majority in the USA and are a little baffled why same sex couples would be motivated to marry. But still my wife and I are far more baffled as to why some so called men and women of GOD would go so far out of their way to make the lives of same sex couples artificially miserable.

Same sex marriage does not threaten our marriage in any way, and we see those so called men and women of GOD as first class servants of the devil. Intolerant bigots and rascals, as far as I am concerned they should eat their own shit and die.

 

[CycloWizard]

I have visited plenty of people in the hospital who are not members of my family, and there is no legal requirement that one need be a spouse to have power-of-attorney for healthcare. This whole business is simply a red herring to gain Obama political points. I can give anyone I want power-of-attorney for healthcare simply by filling out a little paperwork or filing an advance directive.

 

[nageov3t]

I have visited plenty of people in the hospital who are not members of my family, and there is no legal requirement that one need be a spouse to have power-of-attorney for healthcare. This whole business is simply a red herring to gain Obama political points. I can give anyone I want power-of-attorney for healthcare simply by filling out a little paperwork or filing an advance directive.

in some states (I want to say one of the virginias) gay people can't enter into any type of contract with eachother that would simulate the benefits of marriage.

not to mention, why should we have to? if your wife gets hit by a bus tomorrow, it's just assumed that you're in the position to make medical decisions for her. why shouldn't gay people have the same luxury just because their state bans gay marriage?

 

[Mr. Pedantic]

Wait...so people can't have non-family visitors? So no colleagues, family friends, girlfriends, that sort of thing?

 

[Robor]

Keep pissing off the coutry. Keep it up fucker.

Awww... Your idiotic comment didn't turn into an Obama hating circle jerk so you did another troll-n-run. You're such a douche.

 

[umbrella39]

Keep pissing off the coutry. Keep it up fucker.

Points at you and laughs. Keep it up indeed.

 

[nageov3t]

Wait...so people can't have non-family visitors? So no colleagues, family friends, girlfriends, that sort of thing?

I think yes, like if they're in intensive care or something?

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

No one has really noticed the significance of this yet. I'll wait and see.

 

[nageov3t]

I have visited plenty of people in the hospital who are not members of my family, and there is no legal requirement that one need be a spouse to have power-of-attorney for healthcare. This whole business is simply a red herring to gain Obama political points. I can give anyone I want power-of-attorney for healthcare simply by filling out a little paperwork or filing an advance directive.

a snippet from the NYT coverage of this...

"Gay rights advocates said the rules change was inspired by one of those cases involving a same-sex couple, Janice Langbehn and Lisa Pond, who were profiled in The New York Times last year. After Ms. Pond was stricken with a fatal brain aneurysm, Ms. Langbehn was denied visiting rights in 2007 by a Florida hospital. Although Ms. Langbehn had power of attorney and she and Ms. Pond were parents to four children they had adopted, the hospital refused for eight hours to allow her and the children to see Ms. Pond, her partner for 18 years. Ms. Pond died as Ms. Langbehn tried in vain to get to her side."