Debunking the Debunking

Today in an article written by The Associated Press, regarding the removal of the end-of-life provision in the Senate version of "Health Care Reform," the AP claimed it had debunked Sarah Palin's "death panel" claim.

From the article:

"In a widely quoted Facebook posting, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin charged that federal bureaucrats would play God, ruling on whether ailing seniors or children with Down syndrome — such as Palin's son Trig — are worthy of health care. Palin called the proposal "downright evil."

Many news organizations — including The Associated Press — debunked Palin's claim. The provision that caused the uproar would authorize Medicare to pay doctors for voluntary counseling about end-of-life care."

A bit later in the article, they described Palin's latest Facebook post:

"Palin did not respond to requests for comment. But in a Facebook posting late Wednesday night, Palin defended her original claim, which President Barack Obama and other Democrats have criticized.

"With all due respect, it's misleading for the president to describe this section as an entirely voluntary provision that simply increases the information offered to Medicare recipients," she said, noting that the provision authorizes consultations whenever a Medicare recipient's health changes significantly or when they enter a nursing home.

Since the bill's intent is to reduce overall health care costs, it's logical to assume that care for seniors may be curtailed, Palin said.

"It's all just more evidence that the Democratic legislative proposals will lead to health care rationing, and more evidence that the top-down plans of government bureaucrats will never result in real health care reform," she wrote. "

So if I understand correctly, the AP debunked Palin's "death panel" claim, yet after said "debunking" Palin was somehow able to clearly state that the intent of "Health Care Reform" is to reduce costs, which may lead to rationing - and the AP was not able to provide evidence to the contrary.

Thank goodness we have the AP to trust for integrity in journalism.

The complete article here...