How Much is a Baby's Life Worth Under Socialized Healthcare?

So shocking you just know it has to be true:

A fresh medical assessment is to be carried out on a baby boy at the centre of a “right-to-life” legal dispute, a High Court judge heard on Monday.

The one-year-old, known as Baby RB for legal reasons, was born with a rare, genetic muscle condition that makes it hard for him to breathe independently.

The father is fighting a hospital’s attempt – backed by the mother – to withdraw his son’s life support.

The father’s lawyers argue that the boy’s brain is unaffected.

This means he can see, hear, interact and play, they say.

Despite having to remain in hospital and being dependent on a ventilator to breathe, he enjoys having stories read to him and listening to music, according to the lawyers.

They are submitting video footage to the court, which they say shows him playing with his toys.

But the hospital says that Baby RB’s quality of life is so low that it would not be in his best interests to try to save him – a move supported by the baby’s mother, who is separated from the father on “amicable” terms.

But solicitor Michael Mylonas, acting for the hospital, said the trust was seeking permission to withdraw fundamental life support “to allow him a peaceful, calm and dignified death”.

A preview of things to come for Americans?

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