January 28, 2023 Melissa Ortiz: Holocaust massacre of disabled people reverberates in medicine today
On Holocaust Remembrance Day, Able American Senior Advisor Melissa Ortiz was featured in multiple news outlets to explain how people with disabilities were massacred during the Holocaust, and the same devaluation to these individuals remains today. We discussed how it continues to reverberate throughout healthcare.
In a commentary for The Washington Times, Melissa wrote:
Ideas once condemned are being embraced and defended again. This time the twist is even more ominous. Murder is now called Compassionate Choice. End-of-life medical assistance was thought to relieve suffering that seemed pointless, and euthanasia is now called physician-assisted suicide. Healers are becoming killers again just to save insurance companies money and protect community resources. Instead of respecting all humans who have something to offer just because they are alive, money is calling the shots….
As inflation rises and resources become scarce, a return to the “involuntary euthanasia” that culminated in the Holocaust, for those who are either expensive to maintain or problematic to include, is enforced. secretly move towards euthanasia.
In the commentary, Melissa shared her own personal experience advocating against this line of thinking in her recent battle with cancer. I’ll explain more when I’m there.
