Is healthcare a right or privilege?

Nurses Activism

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If it is a right, then we have some work to do. If a privelidge, you get what you can pay for, right? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

My my my...........after reading all the comments here I want to cry. It's sad, so very sad that anyone would not want healthcare for all. I am not speaking from either party line. I am speaking from my heart. For a minute forget about the politics, wealth, status,and color, and just see a human in need. As nurses, we should focus on the needs of those who we were called to provide a service to without bias. Do we really understand "The Nurses Pledge"?:redpinkhe

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what ever happened to personal responsibility?

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Specializes in Geriatrics, Home Health.
what ever happened to personal responsibility?

"Personal Responsibility" usually translates to "Don't get sick. If you get sick, it's your fault, and you will be punished." Try saying that to a cancer patient, or someone with pneumonia.

Consumer Reports had an article on healthcare reform in 2009 (I forget which month). According to them, if everyone in the US took up health living tomorrow, we would have the second-highest health care costs in the world.

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what ever happened to personal responsibility?

Personal responsibility for what? Having a heart attack, developing cancer, getting hit by a drunk driver?

There are alot of things that are not a persons fault. I have a condition that makes me uninsurable. I did not "bring this on my sefl". I developed it. What lack of personal responsibility did I have? I do not smoke, drink, take drugs, I am not a diabetic, I do not have high blood pressure. I do not weigh 300 pounds.

Am I irresponsible if I did not have insurance? Why should a person's employment status determine if they have medical insurance? Why don't we tie car insurance to someones' employment? No job that offers car insurance, no drivers license!

Does that sound ridiculous? That is about as ridiculous as tying the ability to have health insurance to someones job.

To assume that there is a a lack of personal responsibility for lack of health insurance is insane, and rather unfair. Lets blame the victim, why don't we? JMHO and my NY $0.02.

Lindarn, RN, BSN, CCRN

Spokane, Washington

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Specializes in PICU, NICU, L&D, Public Health, Hospice.
To assume that there is a a lack of personal responsibility for lack of health insurance is insane, and rather unfair. Lets blame the victim, why don't we? JMHO and my NY $0.02.

Lindarn, RN, BSN, CCRN

Spokane, Washington

In fact, that attitude and opinion is quite popular with the self described social "conservative" groups just now. It is, in reality, simply a boorish form of discrimination against un-, under-, and self employed persons who cannot afford the ridiculous premiums demanded by the health insurance companies. Oh, and it also includes those who did pay the ridiculous premiums only to have their care and coverage denied when they had a significant health event or illness. This "popular" cry for "personal responsibility" then only applies to poor people...because the wealthy do not lose their homes or need the protection of bankrupcy when they suffer the financial devastation of an illness or injury unpaid by insurance. And don't forget that most bankrupcies do not occur as an immediate aftermath of that foray into the world of uninsured care....no...most of those folks manage to devastate their savings, retirement, college funds, borrow from family...etc to remain afloat for a period of time, and then one more thing happens that their finances cannot bear....

The callous and uncaring remarks suggesting that the woes of our health insurance industry or the weaknesses in our health delivery system can be remedied by people "taking responsibility" for their own health is magical thinking. I seriously pray that those who flaunt such judgements never find themselves in a situation where they need or have just had a life saving (really expensive) medical intervention which their insurance refuses to cover. They might have to eat those words and rethink those attitudes, which is not easy to do when you are trying to stay alive, in your home, and out of bankrupcy.

The saddest part, for me, is that in this forum that discrimination comes from health professionals...I hope their personal bias against the poor does not come across so glaringly in their work.

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Specializes in Adult ICU.

"My my my...........after reading all the comments here I want to cry. It's sad, so very sad that anyone would not want healthcare for all."

Don't cry, you have it wrong. It is a wonderful thing to be able to consider health care for all, and we attempt to provide it. And, you know what? We do! I can't tell you a single person, U.S. Citizen or not, that wasn't given the best treatment at the hospitals I have worked. I know, all those horror stories will come out now that I have said that.

But, these issues are what "we" in this so called "boorish" "uncaring" "callous" ideology want to fix, despite the perceptions of some posters here. I just don't think that what is on the table is a solution. Where is the outcry against the lawyers that make thousands of dollars off of medical mishaps, some ridiculous? Oh no, only 90-plus percent of congress are all lawyers, can't put that into legislation. Let's attack the insurance companies. (I am not defending them, just merely making a point). There are many more facets to this dilemma, and they aren't being addressed. And yes, I think there should be some personal responsibility, on everyone's part.

And, what can we offer people when the country is broke? We are at a debt level of 12.2 trillion dollars and counting. That spelled out is $12,000,000,000.000 by the way. Well, I guess money does grow on trees. Good thing China is still accepting the greenbacks.

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My my my...........after reading all the comments here I want to cry. It's sad, so very sad that anyone would not want healthcare for all. I am not speaking from either party line. I am speaking from my heart. For a minute forget about the politics, wealth, status,and color, and just see a human in need. As nurses, we should focus on the needs of those who we were called to provide a service to without bias. Do we really understand "The Nurses Pledge"?:redpinkhe

Ahhhhhhhh but what is the need?

You need emergency surgery after a car accident to live? Okay I'll help pay.

You need bariatric surgery after a life of fast food? Ummm no. STOP EATING MCDONALDS!!!

Healthcare can never be a 'right.' Even in a country with universal healthcare it is still only a privilige as long as the government and/or people deem it to be.

You have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. If your pursuit of happiness involves Big Macs and it infringes on your life then maybe you need to find happiness elsewhere... Elsewhere isn't in my pocket by the way.

ETA:

By the way. We are not our professions. It's perfectly acceptable to do your job professionally and well and still have your own human opinions. You don't stop being human when you go to work as a nurse. You just keep those opinions to yourself and don't let it affect your work.

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Specializes in Geriatrics, Home Health.
And, what can we offer people when the country is broke? We are at a debt level of 12.2 trillion dollars and counting. That spelled out is $12,000,000,000.000 by the way. Well, I guess money does grow on trees. Good thing China is still accepting the greenbacks.

War is expensive. Dubya entered office with a budget surplus. Unfortunately, Obama's spending freeze does not apply to defense spending.

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Specializes in med/surg/tele/LTC/geriatrics.

I think people should have to put some effort into their own healthcare. We should focus more on prevention than bandaid treatments. I have volunteered at out local wellness clinic which serves the working poor. They are ineligable for a goverment handout because they make too much and are too poor for their own health care coverage. It is a crooked system where these working poor would make a better living mooching off our government because they can't make a decent living.:eek:

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Specializes in PICU, NICU, L&D, Public Health, Hospice.

lets focus on prevention...the unemployed, underemployed and self employed who have limited access to health insurance do not have the same priviledges that the wealthy and insured do in preventing health problems.

lets talk about routine HgbA1c...who pays for that for the guy who has no insurance? certainly, there is no need to discuss this test by test...no insurance coupled with poor access will result in poor medical oversight for chronic conditions. who pays for chemstrips? who pays for medications in the absence of insurance?

our system is broken. we have the best care available in the world and the worst outcomes. we have millions of people who have no insurance and millions more who are in danger of having no insurance simply because it is tied directly to their employment....and did anyone notice that unemployment is 15% (20% in Michigan)? these people still have gall bladder attacks, get kidney infections, develop pneumonia...every health risk and more of the wealthy...they just don't have a way to pay for it. we are currently paying for it as a country and government, we are just paying for it in the MOST expensive way, the smallest bang for the buck both for the patient and for the payor. this is simply not an effective or sustainable system at this time.

nobody has said that people shouldn't take good care of themselves...but trying to imply that diabetes, heart disease, or other chronic condition is responsible for the failures in our system is, again, magical thinking. and clearly, persons suffering from cancer and bowel obstructions and influenza (etc, etc, etc) are not "personally responsible" for their disease other than in the fact that they must deal with it on a real personal and financial level.

I repeat...such discrimination against the poor and the sick is boorish...and sad coming from health care professionals (who certainly are welcome to their own opinions). and I hope that those who feel this way about the poor are good at hiding that when caring for them in their places of employment.

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I repeat...such discrimination against the poor and the sick is boorish...and sad coming from health care professionals (who certainly are welcome to their own opinions). and I hope that those who feel this way about the poor are good at hiding that when caring for them in their places of employment.

Discrimination - 'unfair treatment of a person or group on the basis of prejudice'

How is our treatment discriminatory?

In facvt, those with money carrying those without is more discriminatory than anything said here. How is it fair for one portion of society to carry another?

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