Lockdown and levelling down: why Savulescu and Cameron are mistaken about selective isolation of the elderly.
J Med Ethics
; 46(11): 722-723, 2020 11.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1723854
ABSTRACT
In their recent article, 'Why lockdown of the elderly is not ageist and why levelling down equality is wrong', Savulescu and Cameron argue for selective isolation of the elderly as an alternative to general lockdown. An important part of their argument is the claim that the latter amounts to 'levelling down equality' and that this is 'unethical' or even 'morally repugnant'. This response argues that they fail to justify either part of this claim:
the claim that levelling down is always morally wrong is subject to challenges that Savulescu and Cameron do not consider; and a policy of maintaining general lockdown does not constitute levelling down, as it provides absolute benefits to those who would be worse off under selective isolation.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Ageism
Limits:
Aged
/
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
J Med Ethics
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Medethics-2020-106776
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