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The limited impact of indeterminacy for healthcare rationing : how indeterminacy problems show the need for a hybrid theory, but nothing more

Herlitz, Anders LU (2016) In Journal of Medical Ethics 42(1). p.22-25
Abstract
A notorious debate in the ethics of healthcare rationing concerns whether to address rationing decisions with substantial principles or with a procedural approach. One major argument in favour of procedural approaches is that substantial principles are indeterminate so that we can reasonably disagree about how to apply them. To deal with indeterminacy, we need a just decision process. In this paper I argue that it is a mistake to abandon substantial principles just because they are indeterminate. It is true that reasonable substantial principles designed to deal with healthcare rationing can be expected to be indeterminate. Yet, the indeterminacy is only partial. In some situations we can fully determine what to do in light of the... (More)
A notorious debate in the ethics of healthcare rationing concerns whether to address rationing decisions with substantial principles or with a procedural approach. One major argument in favour of procedural approaches is that substantial principles are indeterminate so that we can reasonably disagree about how to apply them. To deal with indeterminacy, we need a just decision process. In this paper I argue that it is a mistake to abandon substantial principles just because they are indeterminate. It is true that reasonable substantial principles designed to deal with healthcare rationing can be expected to be indeterminate. Yet, the indeterminacy is only partial. In some situations we can fully determine what to do in light of the principles, in some situations we cannot. The conclusion to draw from this fact is not that we need to develop procedural approaches to healthcare rationing, but rather that we need a more complex theory in which both substantial principles and procedural approaches are needed. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Journal of Medical Ethics
volume
42
issue
1
pages
22 - 25
publisher
BMJ Publishing Group
external identifiers
  • scopus:84953280457
ISSN
1473-4257
DOI
10.1136/medethics-2015-102937
language
English
LU publication?
no
id
0a74e1f0-7f9c-481c-a669-9c31d739a0f2
date added to LUP
2024-12-10 15:00:08
date last changed
2025-04-06 04:04:16
@article{0a74e1f0-7f9c-481c-a669-9c31d739a0f2,
  abstract     = {{A notorious debate in the ethics of healthcare rationing concerns whether to address rationing decisions with substantial principles or with a procedural approach. One major argument in favour of procedural approaches is that substantial principles are indeterminate so that we can reasonably disagree about how to apply them. To deal with indeterminacy, we need a just decision process. In this paper I argue that it is a mistake to abandon substantial principles just because they are indeterminate. It is true that reasonable substantial principles designed to deal with healthcare rationing can be expected to be indeterminate. Yet, the indeterminacy is only partial. In some situations we can fully determine what to do in light of the principles, in some situations we cannot. The conclusion to draw from this fact is not that we need to develop procedural approaches to healthcare rationing, but rather that we need a more complex theory in which both substantial principles and procedural approaches are needed.}},
  author       = {{Herlitz, Anders}},
  issn         = {{1473-4257}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{22--25}},
  publisher    = {{BMJ Publishing Group}},
  series       = {{Journal of Medical Ethics}},
  title        = {{The limited impact of indeterminacy for healthcare rationing : how indeterminacy problems show the need for a hybrid theory, but nothing more}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/medethics-2015-102937}},
  doi          = {{10.1136/medethics-2015-102937}},
  volume       = {{42}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}