Is health care a basic right? Essay

I strongly believe that healthcare is a basic human right; however, the reality is that health care is often based on privilege and/or driven by employer benefits. There are many factors to consider when discussing healthcare as a basic human right. All individuals, regardless of income, race, or status should be treated equally when it comes to safe, effective, and quality health care. Even though I believe healthcare should be a human right, we have to consider how this would be feasible among different populations and societies. According toMaruthappu, Ologunde, and Gunarajasingam (2012) “a fundamental difficulty with considering healthcare as a right is that this right, unlike many others, is dependent upon the resources of a society,

America is a country that is commonly appreciated by its citizens for the values that it fought for and stands by today. When new policies and ideas are brought forward and introduced to our society, proponents and opponents frequently rely on our historic values such as freedom, equality and democracy to support their stances. While capitalism is something that has always been important to the United States people, it is important that we don’t confuse the systems that should be accessible and guaranteed to all with the systems that are excludable and look to make a profit. Health care is one system that should be easily accessible and available for all American citizens

As I stated previously I think that all people should be allowed access to Health Care and I do think it is a right as an individual. I do believe also that it should not just be free. I feel that all persons should have to pay something for the services and medication they receive. With the cost of medical care estimated to reach the trillions in the next decade we must do something to help to keep those costs down as low as possible. However under the current condition of our economy, with nearly 10 million people in the country being out of work it would

Sanjay Sanghoee wrote an article for The Huffington Post stating, “The reason that Americans are so divided on this issue is that the right to good health (which can only be ensured through guaranteed health care) is not mentioned in any of our founding documents” (Sanghoee 2013). The fact that the “right to good health” is not mentioned in any founding documents is because healthcare wasn’t an issue in 1776 when America first became a free country. Even if there were a developed healthcare system back then, it would be so different to the healthcare we have today. Amendments and rights have been added to the constitution, including the right to due process, and prohibiting search and seizure (Sanghoee 2013). If the right to health care was so important, it could have been added to the constitution as a right.

Some might argue that a right to healthcare could possibly increase U.S. debt and deficit. Strong case, but if the U.S. government can spend millions on other countries then I doubt debt is a serious issue when it comes to medical services

Every single life on the surface of this earth has an equal right to existence. The life of an affluent American should not be worthier in the right to existence than that of a poor American. Neither should is the life of a bishop be more important than that of a Muslim child. Every life is sacred and equal. Without a healthy citizenry, no nation of people could fight enough to either demand for their freedom nor maintain the freedom that has been already gained. It is within that context that I declare that the right to an affordable healthcare is as sacrosanct as the right to be

America is known for democracy, freedom, and the American Dream. American citizens have the right to free speech, free press, the right to bear arms, and the right to religious freedom to name a few. The Declaration of Independence states that American citizens have the rights including “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” America promises equality and freedom and the protection of their rights as outlined in the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. But with all the rights and freedoms that American citizens enjoy, there is one particular area where the United States seems to be lacking. That area is health care. The United States is the only industrialized nation that doesn’t have some form of legal

As humans, the right to medical care is something that should be seen as a privilege. No one should have to worry about if they are able to receive the healthcare that they require. Everyone has the right to receive the care that they should need. The only way to provide equal care for everyone in America is if healthcare were to be free. Though many countries around the world are able to provide free healthcare, this is something that is unfortunately not possible for all countries. There would be many issues that would arise if free healthcare were provided here in America. Due to the fact that quality care would be difficult to find, taxes would be increased, and much more, health care should not be free.

Every person should have the right to health care, weather they are rich or not. The cost of health care has become a burden for many. People do not want to skip out on having coverage so they endure the high rates and poor care. “Half of all bankruptcies are caused by medical bills” (Banks, J, 2006, para, 3), this astonishing number should be enough to make law makers and health care providers reevaluate the cost of health care. In the next couple of decades the cost of health insurance will “cost more than the median income of an American household” (Young, J, 2012), which is unacceptable because almost all American will be in debt. “One in Five Americans are paying off debt” (Collins, R, 2006, para.4), with the way health care is going down, soon everyone will be in debt. “Millions of Americans are already paying off 100,000 dollars in debt” (Pibel, D, 2006 para.1), in the next few years that amount will go up if changes don’t occur. Also people who do have healthcare are not the only ones suffering, “a survey shows that cost was the leading reason why people did not get health care.” (Young, J, 2012) These people go on there day to day lives hoping to not get sick because they will end up picking up the tab for it. Everyone rich or poor should be able to afford health care, so they can lead better lives. Having health care should not be a luxury it should be a common right.

Many people contest to the statement that America's health care system is the "best in the world" (The Basic Dilemma). The ones that agree wholeheartedly with this quote are those who are on the outside looking in. Surely they are ignorant of the statistical data proving that the land of the free is plagued with the horrible "disease" of insufficient medical coverage. This issue has always been a problem ever since the concept of health care came in to existence. Health care is an industry, which like all of the like, cannot run effectively without the proper funding. But health care is seen as a private good, so if one cannot afford health care they

Through hard work anyone should be able to provide health care for themselves and their families much like how they must be able to access other basic necessities such as food and shelter. The right to life does not necessarily include medical care. The view is that persons who live destructive lives and put themselves in unnecessary dangers should not have their medical bills paid for by taxpayers’ money. Why should we be responsible for other’s recklessness? In addition to these arguments, there is also the belief that a health care system that is based on market economies would increase competition and therefore actually lower prices like for any other product or service. If history is put into perspective, medical technology has advanced to the point where people are kept alive beyond their natural capability and this puts an additional strain on the system.

According to Business dictionary it defined healthcare as “The act of taking preventative or necessary medical procedures to improve a person's well-being. This may be done with surgery, the administering of medicine, or other alterations in a person's lifestyle. These services are typically offered through a health care system made up of hospitals and physicians”. I believe the access of healthcare should be a basic right because every individual working in the united states legally must pay their taxes, which indicate most of tax payer’s money go towards healthcare subsidization. With these reasons, I believe healthcare should

There are few issues as controversial in politics as the topic of universal health care. While most people consider some sort of health care to be a basic human right, the question remains whether the government holds a moral duty to create a universal healthcare system for its citizens or the free market is expected to provide those services. The idea of universal health care refers to an elaborate type of health care system which allows financial security and health care to all of its citizens. It is designed around providing certain benefits to all members of society with the end goal of improving individual access to health care services. Universal healthcare is not a form of welfare and does not require coverage for all people for everything. It just covers the aspects of certain medicinal services. An individual cannot automatically be deprived of health coverage as long as that individual lives in the country that provides universal health care. I believe that Universal health care is a right. I know many people who have put off important procedures and checkups simply because they could not afford it. I have even experienced this first hand.

Answering this question is provide a complex views in different aspect such as ethical, judicial and financial tensions. I believe that health care should be a right, not a privilege or a commodity for all American citizen and legal resident. The United States as one of the wealthy country, everyone should has the human right to access health care. Although the Americans are greater users of higher health care prices, diagnostic by using expensive and sophisticated technologies machines (like magnetic resonance imaging MRI) and they are top consumers of prescription drugs, but the U.S. is the only country without a publicly financed universal health system. As Schneider (2011) correctly argues

After all, it should be a right to be healthy. This is not the case with how the health system works in America. If everybody has the right to be healthy, then why is it only affordable to the upper class? Denying necessary coverage is denying the right to be healthy. Democrat Representative James Clyburn in South Carolina, said in an article that the health care problem in America is “the civil rights movement of the 21st century” (Faces of...Debate). In the Constitution and in the Bill of Rights, people have inalienable rights that cannot be taken away from them. Some of these include the right to speech, religion, press, assemble peacefully, and even to own a gun. Healthcare coverage should be apart of that list too. It doesn't make sense that the Government says it's fine that you can own a gun no matter what, and yet, they could care less if you are healthy or not.