Should Americans have the right to healthcare? Now that is the question. Many believe that it should be a right and many believe that it is a service. But who is right and what is right? What is more feasible and what is not?

We will look at both sides to see why people believe healthcare is a human right and why healthcare is not a right, but a service.

Healthcare is a human right

“Healthcare is kind of a privilege right now, but it needs to be a right. When it comes to humanity, I feel like a lot of people gotta step up to make it better,” a rapper stated to CNN.

There are numerous pros to healthcare being a human right. It is said that establishing a right to healthcare could lower the cost of healthcare in the United States. As well, a right to healthcare could save lives. In a 2009 study from Harvard researchers, they stated that, “lack of health insurance is associated with as many as 44,789 deaths per year,” which translate into a 40% increased risk of death among the uninsured people out there.

It is also said that a right to healthcare could improve public health. In 2012 there was a study done with 100 countries and that it was stated,  “evidence suggests that broader health coverage generally leads to better access to necessary care and improved population health, particularly for poor people.” In the United States we have 33% people that that are less likely to have a normal doctor, 25% of people more likely to have unmet health needs and over 50% of people are more likely to not receive needed medicines compared to their Canadian counterparts who have a universal right to healthcare.

Some believe that a right to healthcare could encourage entrepreneurship throughout the United States. Many American citizens are afraid to start their own small or big businesses for fear of losing the health  insurance provided by their existing jobs. The Kauffman-RAND Institute for Entrepreneurship Public Policy estimated that a 33% increase in new US businesses may lead to a result to increased access to health insurance through the Obamacare health insurance exchanges.

Medical bankruptcies could be stopped as well. In 2007, almost 62% of all US bankruptcies were related to medical expenses and 78% of these were filed by people who already had medical insurance. If all US citizens were provided with healthcare under a single-payer system, some believe that bankruptcy would no longer exist because the American citizens would not be paying, but the government would.

Healthcare is NOT a right, but a service

“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.” The words that are in the Declaration of Independence explain the “rights” of the American citizens. It does not include healthcare at all. However for some odd reason, there are Americans who believe healthcare is not ONLY a right, but that the United States government should be providing it with taxpayers dollars.

If you think about it, if the medical treatment you needed was a right, does it mean that your neighbors, government, Toys R Us, are required to provide the healthcare for you? Sounds a bit ridiculous, doesn’t it? You can look at it in another way, does it mean that every American can demand to be treated from skilled and knowledgeable physicians and providers?

Healthcare is a necessity to life and we can all agree on that. Just as that is a necessity to life, so are shelter, clothing, and food. But we do not see the American people demanding that we have “food care” or government housing for everyone. And Americans expect choices and competition when it comes to shopping for necessities of life, so why not healthcare? Not everyone needs it and there are some people out there who do not even bother going to the doctors.

Due to the costs of healthcare, the demand for healthcare is much greater than the supply in practically almost every country with a government controlled healthcare system. When you look at Medicare, a single-payer plan, that is not financially sustainable either.

People are out there complaining about healthcare costs. Well, if you do not like what you are paying, you have the right to go to a different doctor or change your healthcare plan. The free-market allows you to do that. And we look at it at the end of the day and the answer is simple. Healthcare is just like any other economic activity. And the governments role should be reduced from it and let societies put their patients in charge of their healthcare.

The question was asked to students at GNA

Liam  

Do you believe that American citizens should have the right to healthcare? Why or why not?

I believe that American citizens have the right to healthcare. In simplest terms, a democratic government’s duty is to protect the right s and safety of its citizens. Disease and injury threaten the safety of those citizens, which, in my belief, making it the responsibility of the government to help ensure that injury and illness can be treated. 

Danny

Do you believe that American citizens should have the right to healthcare? Why or why not?

Healthcare is, in my eyes, a non-negotiable entitlement; this opinion is formed in only a mind mostly as a result of the economic crisis which is faced by American healthcare as is. The great problem posed by healthcare in the United States is the price of many prescription drugs and medication. It is by no means my belief that certain medical  procedures should be free of cost for the patient; however, the price of certain surgeries and medication should be drastically reduced; profit should be nonexistent from healthcare services and under no circumstances should the patient be placed in financial troubles as a consequence of his or her medical needs. 

Ryan 

Do you believe that American citizens should have the right to healthcare? Why or why not?

Healthcare is not the same as health coverage.  All those who are ill or injured should receive treatment to grant them health. However, coverage that pays for the treatment is not a right under the law or constitution. People should pay for their own treatment or obtain insurance. This is not to say that the poorest should not be covered for free, but to have universal health coverage, run by the government would be socialistic and highly inefficient. 

Mr. Stegura

Do you believe that American citizens should have the right to healthcare? Why or why not?

Americans should not have the right to healthcare and we are not entitled to it. Rights are reserved to national freedoms like speech and guns. Healthcare is different for everyone. Some people are healthier because they care about their health. So shouldn’t doctors be able to choose who gets healthcare by who gives more money? If you are purposely being unhealthy than doctors should not see you.