Introduction
Introduction
Over the past two decades, the federal government and private industry have been trying to hold down medical costs through a variety of cost-containment efforts. The results have been disappointing. The cost of medical care continues to rise at a faster rate than overall inflation. Many experts say the only solution left is to “ration” health care. The idea of withholding certain medical treatments from certain patients is still very controversial, but some forms of rationing are already being tried.