Tuesday, September 14, 2010

the healthcare/life dichotomy

To those people who say that healthcare is not a right, but a good or service to be bought...and that life is a right, as in "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," I would like to know what you see as the delineation between health and life.

If, as a nurse, I saw you on the street bleeding, and I walked away mumbling that "healthcare is not a right because you can't pay me," and then you died, would I not be guilty of taking away your right to life?

If you become incapacitated with a fatal form of cancer that has a good chance of remission with treatment, but you are unable to work due to the illness and lose your insurance, thereby being unable to cover the doctor's bills, have you lost your right to healthcare? Even if being denied healthcare also deprives you of your right to life?

What about in the case of a mother who considers aborting her fetus because she is single and can't afford to raise the child, who then decides to keep it...and then the baby is born with a congenital disease that requires surgery to survive? Why, according to the religious and governmentally-conservative person, did this baby have the right to life in the womb, but not once born?

The other night at work, I had a conversation with two Christian nurses. When I mentioned universal healthcare, the responses were "It's theft," and even worse: "People die, that's life
." Would you feel the same way if you were put in the situation of having no insurance and no money to pay for a doctor? Would it be okay to let you die?

Charities will never be able to cover healthcare for all. And while I agree that government-funded insurance is a redistribution of wealth, there is a moral imperative that goes beyond what Old Testament Christians like to cite as the breaking of the 8th commandment. It's Jesus' call to care for your fellow humans--"Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." Surely this should come before the redistribution of wealth from the taxpayers to the military machine that costs us billions each year.

Healthcare and life are synonymous. You can't have one without the other. Even the person with a common cold could die if it progressed to a systemic infection. There are so many seemingly minor things in this world that would kill us if we didn't have medicine and surgery. Where exactly should the line be drawn on who gets treatment? Or should the line be drawn at all? And if the line is drawn, are we not essentially forming the "death panels" that were feared during the healthcare debate?

5 comments:

troutbirder said...

Absolutely true. Well said Clementine! Christian nurses? Ha!

Glitz Sher~ said...

You are right Clementine..

well, I have read through your post. I am an ordinary Asian Teenage Chinese girl with bad grammar and vocab.
i am just starting to write a blog but i knew my bad vocab will not attract readers.
Do u mind if i need your help to improve my English? Since u is an English, i really hope that you can guide me through this. Will you?

Clementine Moonflower said...

Hi Glitz, what a great blogger name you have!

The best way to improve your English grammar and vocabulary will be to keep writing. Also, try to post some photos to your blog frequently, since I think the pictures draw people in.

Another good way to get readers to your blog is to follow them and make comments on their blog.

You seem to be on the right track! The most important thing is to speak from your heart and have fun with it. If it becomes something that you feel like you're forcing yourself to do, then it will become drudgery. That's why I only write every so often.

Good luck, and if you have any questions I'll be back around!

Anonymous said...

Hey! Cool blog! :)

Clementine Moonflower said...

Thank you Anon! I need to do more here, that's for sure. :-)

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