The fact remains that economic exigencies will continue. The demand for healthcare exceeds affordable supply in every healthcare system in the world, and so resource-allocation decisions are inevitable. The goal becomes to make these decisions fairly. We therefore need to explore ways in which the allocation of resources can be made more consistent with ethical reasoning. It is in everyone's interest to practise ethical decision making whenever possible.
Resource allocation is an ethical issue because it most fundamentally involves questions of justice.
The goal of resource allocation then is to make fair decisions. When one turns to the scholarly disciplines for help, the answer depends on whom you ask. A philosopher would talk about theories of distributive justice. The problem is that these theories yield conflicting definitions. For instance, utilitarianism focuses on the maximization of benefit, while egalitarianism focuses on equality of opportunity and need.