How NEJM’s ethical recommendations on the fair allocation of scarce medical resources perpetuate inequity
This past March, the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) published six ethical recommendations to guide the allocation of scarce medical resources during COVID-19. In their second recommendation, they stated that “critical COVID-19 interventions — testing, PPE, ICU beds, ventilators, therapeutics, and vaccines — should go first to frontline health care workers and others who care for ill patients.” This makes sense because health care workers …
