One of the most incendiary issues that emerged from the health care debate was that of including a provision to pay for end-of-life counseling. The Pew Research Center revealed that only 27% of the American public has put their decisions regarding this issue in writing for their family and others to follow should they become incapacitated. "Half of those ages 65 and older (51%) say their wishes for medical treatment are written down and 54% say they have a living will."

"The national debate over health care reform has focused new attention on the decisions people make about medical care at the end stages of life."

"Public opinion polls show that Americans overwhelmingly support an individual's right to decide whether he or she wants to be kept alive through medical treatment. In a 2005 Pew Research Center survey, 84% said they approved of laws which say medical treatment that is keeping a terminally ill patient alive can be stopped if that is what the patient desires. In addition, 70% said there are some circumstances when a patient should be allowed to die, while 22% said doctors and nurses should always do everything possible to save the life of a patient."

"While a heavy majority of Americans support individual rights in this area, when it comes to personal preferences about medical intervention for oneself at the end of life, the public is more evenly divided. In the same Pew Research survey a narrow majority (53%) said if they were faced with a terminal illness and were suffering a great deal of physical pain they would choose to stop medical treatment, 34% said they would ask their doctor to do everything possible to save their life."

"It's not entirely clear what role the public thinks government should play in these complicated matters. After Congress intervened in 2005 in the case of Terri Schiavo, a brain-damaged Florida woman who eventually died when her feeding tube was removed, there was a significant public backlash. More than seven-in-ten Americans (72%) said Congress should have stayed out of the case, only 17% believed Congress had done the right thing."

"Daughters are more likely than sons to have had these conversations with their parents: 65% of women vs. 48% of men say they have talked to their parents about how to handle their medical care if they become incapacitated. And white adults with parents age 65 or older are more likely than black or Hispanic adults with aging parents to have discussed this issue."