Oregon Public Broadcasting

The U.S. Senate appears to have dropped an amendment to offer Medicare coverage of end-of-life counseling sessions in a health care overhaul.

But Portland Congressman Earl Blumenauer continued Friday to defend the proposal, which he helped craft.  Correspondent Chris Lehman reports.

The provision became a lightning rod for critics including former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, who predicted it would lead to government sponsored “death panels”.

That harsh rhetoric has been denounced by some fellow Republicans and dismissed as simply not true by President Obama. But opposition to the end-of-life counseling proposal has been growing.

Blumenauer defended the measure during a telephone town hall in his Portland area district.

Earl Blumenauer: “What we did with that provision is simply say that if a patient wants to have that consultation with their chosen medical provider, that Medicare would pay for that conversation.”

Blumenauer's provision has apparently fallen out of favor among lawmakers negotiating a Senate version of the health care bill.

But a spokesperson for Blumenauer insists the proposal is still in play in other versions of the bill under debate in the House.