Over the past hundred years, the field of healthcare has undergone immense scrutiny as once black and white lenses have been introduced to various shades of grey.
Within the last decade specifically, the idea of access to healthcare has gained more and more importance, playing a critical role within the last election. Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney’s vice presidential running mate, said “if health care is a right, then those who provide it become servants of those who need it and would be deprived of “being traders like everyone else in a free society.”” He reasoned that a universal healthcare plan, not dissimilar to Obamacare would bind doctors and other healthcare providers to the will of the bureaucracy. Conversely, President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden are advocated of universal, leading to “Obamacare”, a health care plan that is affordable and available to everyone. If one chooses not to enroll in any healthcare plan, they must pay a small fee.
Universal healthcare has come under attack for a variety of reasons, primarily economic. However, economic criticisms of any single model of universal health care, such as Obamacare, do not address whether the idea of allowing every citizen healthcare is ethical. If one considers life to be a right and the duty of the government to facilitate that right within reasonable limits, then it logically follows that universal healthcare is not only desirable, but an obligation of the government.
Yet others would say that health care is a privilege. But the very foundation of life is health, and if millions have not the means to afford it or access it as others do, is the life of such a person unable to obtain health care any less worthy than someone who can afford and access the best medical science has to offer?- It seems clear from Zaremski’s tone that he believes the answer to be a resounding “No”.
Many believe that the Obamacare makes a respectable effort to ensure that buying healthcare is not mandatory for everyone (another ethical issue), by allowing people to forgo any healthcare plan at the cost of a small fee. However, where does the ethicality lie in this?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/miles-j-zaremski/health-care-reform_b_1892221.html
I believe that access to health care is a universal human right. In the UN’s “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” the only mention of health is in Article 25.1 “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.” (http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/). While there are a number of the “universal human rights” that are not actually universal and people in many countries do not have them, it does not mean that we should not strive for them, especially in countries where we can afford to uphold these rights. I think all countries have an obligation to make sure that all 30 of the rights outlined in “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights” including the right to health and it is especially despicable when the US and other developed countries aren’t protecting these rights.
I would think that most people taking this class would argue that healthcare is a right for every individual. Strictly on the basis of valuing a life, stating that healthcare is a right for some not for all begs the question who has a more valuable life – whose lives do we care more about saving.
But that aside I think in discussing the ethical implications of Obamacare, ignoring the many economic criticisms that to be fair would come with any reform quite so large, we cannot criticize that Obamacare ignores so many when it is making an effort to include as many as possible. I am not agreeing that it is okay to still deny healthcare to so many, or how this will only really affect the non “affluent” in the United States but is it more ethical to require people to get healthcare (even for those who don’t want it) and possibly have a few slip through the cracks or allow healthcare to be an unachievable goal for many? I personally prefer the former arguing that it is slightly more ethical than the later assuming that healthcare is a right.
I believe that access to healthcare is a right, because health is one our most basic necessities. The concept of ethicality and economics are entirely controversial, because I believe it is unethical to deny certain people healthcare because of their economic status; however, economically, it is draining for the more fortunate and the government to cover those who cannot afford it. Obviously there is no win-win situation, so a compromise of beliefs is needed in order to determine how to approach healthcare.
I find the Obamacare fine on those who do not have healthcare to be completely ethical, because these people are choosing to not allocate their money rationally. Since Obamacare makes it possible for impoverished people to afford healthcare by basing their premiums off of their incomes; people choosing to not have healthcare are doing so for reasons other than price. If certain people would rather spend money on material goods rather than healthcare, that is their problem and they should be paying a fine. Also, it is completely unfair when they end up in the emergency room, and the government and our taxes end up paying their dues. Overall, I do believe access to healthcare is a right, but the situation gets more complicated when people choose not utilize it.
Works Cited:
“ObamaCare Individual Mandate.” ObamaCare Individual Mandate. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Apr. 2014. .
Many people are okay with Obama’s plan for universal health care. However, there is one thing that makes people resistant to this “Obamacare”: the fee one must pay if they decide not to have health care. Indeed, many people would think that it is irresponsible and unwise to forgo health care because of insurance; nevertheless, people do not like to be forced to into getting health insurance. We live in a country that is built upon the notion that everyone is entitled to free will. Some people feel that if someone or the government encroaches on this free will, then they have the right to resist in order to protect their rights. This fee makes people feel trapped into either getting health care or getting health care because they might as well spend their money on something that can personally benefit them, rather than spending it on some fee. Because the people no longer have a choice (or at least an illusion of a choice) many feel that they should resist the system in order to maintain their right to choose, even if they would choose to get health care under pressure-free circumstances. Unfortunately, what people do not realize is that in order to fund this universal health care system, everyone must contribute towards it, otherwise it won’t work.
Healthcare enters the political realm because of the controversy over whether or not it is a human right. Across the globe, debates over the relationship of health as a human right is changing policy and goals. I believe all health policies should echo human rights, and what those human rights actually looks like will depend on the country, development level, and circumstances. All policies should strive to create an environment where basic conditions are accessible to achieve health and well-being. Thus, the necessary basic conditions will include clean water, housing, protection, safety, etc; healthcare is not the first priority in a human rights approach as presented in “Human Rights and Ethics in Public Health.” Financing a healthcare system is a lesser priority only after the government has provided all basic needs and if it is financially feasible for the nation to provide it. Then from there, those are the most vulnerable and have the least access to basic care should be provided with a system where they pay the least to receive care. Thus, Obamacare fits this model to a certain extent, but my human rights issue with Obamacare mirrors that of my peers. Just as Geovonni mentioned, Obamacare seems good in general, but the fee for refusing healthcare is an issue. This fee takes away autonomy and feeling of freedom, and also the fee forces the individual to prioritize healthcare above other things. Water, housing, and safety should be a priority over healthcare, and individual’s funds may be more ethically and better spent towards basic necessities rather than Obamacare services. While healthcare may be a universal ideal, a nation first needs to deal with its vulnerable populations to ensure that basic necessities are met before healthcare goals are met.
Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1751819/
I believe that access to health care is a basic human right. I agree with your point that if life is a right, then doing everything in order to preserve life and the quality of life in terms of health is also a right. It is interesting to consider the economical ramification of this thought. A huge amount of money is given to cover the health care of those who can not afford it themselves. Is it ethical to require the government and the wealthy to have to pay for this? They would likely argue that it is not fair for them to be forced to do this.
Not only do I like your way of writing, but I also appreciate you properly displaying a simple yet overlooked concept, “…but the very foundation of life is health, and if millions have not the means to afford it or access it as others do, is the life of such a person unable to obtain health care any less worthy than someone who can afford and access the best medical science has to offer?” While the point of our class is to take in different perspectives and productively sift through diverse ethics, I agree that on this point we can pretty much accept along with the author, that the answer is indeed “no”. However, the next step is what will actually give us results. This does not diminish the previous process, it is necessary, but results will come from application. Therefore, the next step is combining the established ethical standard with a process that upholds the standard in an ethical manner, when applied to each individual in the system.
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