```````````````````````````````Health Care is a Right, Not a Privilege Whether health care is a right or a privilege is an ongoing debate, and is relatable to the concept of justice. Arguments to support that access to adequate health care is a right can developed around the United States Constitution, the idea of liberty, and the responsibility of nursing to promote health. When looking at what happens when health care is not provided, it is clear that denied access to health care not only increases illness and mortality rates for those who aren’t cared for, but also uses up communal resources and ultimately impacts the quality of care of all citizens. Natural rights are rights that pertain to a person’s right to exist, such as a person’s right to “pursue comfort and happiness as long as the rights of others are not injured” (Papadimos, 2007). These rights are in line with the Hippocratic Oath and the ethical obligation of nurses and other health care workers to help others, regardless of economic status. Therefore, access to health care should be considered a right, not a privilege. On July 4, 1776, congress signed the Declaration of Independence. In its prose, it states “we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” (U.S. 1776). Without access to healthcare, how can a person achieve their rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? Health dictates quality of life. Therefore, the right to life, liberty and happiness can be interpreted to include access to healthcare. Discussions for national health care began as early as 1912. President Theodore Roosevelt included national health care in his presidential candidate platform, and President Lyndon Johnson went on to sign Medicare into law in 1965 (Medicare Resource Center, 2011). The initiation of Medicare shows that much of the nation supports widespread healthcare access. Having been signed into law for almost fifty years now, the system is and not yet perfected by any means. Medicare alone poses such a financial disaster for the country, so it is quite discerning to imagine the long term effects of the Affordable Care Act. When healthcare is not available to certain populations, society as a whole is impacted. Public health suffers when people do not have access to healthcare. “Poverty and the placement of people within the margins of society are key factors in the determination of public health,” (Butts & Rich, 2013, p. 329). Imagine a diabetic that doesn’t monitor and treat blood sugars, a patient with hypertension who doesn’t control their blood pressure, or an elderly person on a fixed income who doesn’t seek treatment for pneumonia. All of these people have something in common; a lack of access and or the ability to pay for healthcare. What happens to these people? Chances are, they eventually end up in the emergency department, admitted to the hospital, or they die. If they receive care, the cost of this care is absorbed by those who are insured and have the ability to pay for healthcare. As a society we are already paying for healthcare in a very disparate way, and this is a vicious cycle that will continue to weigh down America’s finances and health care budgets for years to come. Allowing everyone their right to basic health care could decrease this effect. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandates that all citizens purchase insurance, or are subject to a fine. Yes, the U.S. remains the only industrialized country with fee for service/for profit sick care delivery system. However, the ACA is a big step towards making health care accessible to all U.S. citizens. Our “right” to have insurance is encouraged, offered, and made affordable to all U.S. citizens. The ACA gives all U.S. citizens access to health care. However, the question remains, should it be equal for every person? We do believe that every person should have a right to basic health care from the government, and the choice to supplement their coverage with free market insurance should they have the desire and the means. Some people believe everyone should have equal access. For example, Norman Daniels (1985) used the basis of Rawl’s concept of justice and suggested a liberty principle. Daniels advocated national healthcare reform and proposed that every person should have equal access to healthcare and reasonable access to healthcare services” (Butts & Rich, 2013, p. 38). Whether the entirety of healthcare is equal or not, we believe it is time we took on our responsibility as a nation and created a just opportunity for all to receive at least an equal minimum access to healthcare. The American Nurses Association (ANA) has been advocating for health care reform for many years. The ANA has been looking for ways America can offer high quality health care for all. Since implementation of the ACA, some communities have engaged nurses to teach and assist individuals sign up for insurance. As nurses, we understand the need for basic health care at all levels; primary, preventative, and urgent care. We must use our knowledge as power, working as a team with our colleagues, politicians, and community members alike, to improve access to health care. As Sacred Heart University students, we must display behaviors that encourage “the betterment of society” and incur a sense of social responsibility, as described in the “Mission Statement” (Sacred Heart University, 2014). After all, nurses are health advocates, and health care is a human right.
References
Butts, J. B., & Rich, K. L. (2013). Nursing Ethics Across the Curriculum and Into Practice (3rd ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett Learning.
Medicare Resource Center. (2011). A Brief History of Medicare in America. Retrieved from http://www.medicareresources.org/basic-medicare-information/brief-history-of-medicare/
Papadimos, T. J. (2007). Healthcare access as a right, not a privilege: A construct of western thought. Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine, 2(11/4/2014) doi:10.1186/1747-5341-2-2
Perry, J. (2011). Health care – is it a right or a privilege | philosophy talk Retrieved from http://www.philosophytalk.org/community/blog/john-perry/2013/12/health-care-–-it-right-or-privilege
Reyerson, N. (2013). DOTmed.com - spotlight: ANA president on health care reform Retrieved from http://www.dotmed.com/news/story/21516?p_begin=0
Sacred Heart University. (2014). Sacred Heart University Mission Statement. Retrieved from www.sacredheart.edu/faithservice/officeofmissionand catholicidentity/missionsta
Wood, D. (2014). Nurses step out to help with ACA enrollment - NurseZone Retrieved from http://www.nursezone.com/Nursing-News-Events/more-news/Nurses-Step-Out-to-Help-with-ACA-Enrollment_42003.aspx
