Miosotis Gonzalez

Professor Roberson & Professor Lockhart

Healthcare Academy CRN#21166

10/14/2022

 Is healthcare a right or a luxury?

There is much debate surrounding the idea of healthcare and whether it should be considered a
human right or a luxury. On one hand, there are those that believe that healthcare is a luxury that
should only be available to those who can afford it. On the other hand, others believe that
healthcare is a basic human right that should be available to everyone, regardless of their
financial situation. So, which is it? Is healthcare a luxury or a human right? Or could it be both
and if so, is there a way to provide healthcare for everyone no matter what your situation is?

After taking some time to think about this question it became clear that the only real answer is
that there is no single answer. Many of the people who are believe in healthcare as a human right
(for this discussion I will refer to it as universal healthcare) will tell you that it’s free in other
countries. Since the United States is one of the richest countries in the world, we should be able
to provide healthcare to everyone. The reality is that in those countries which tend to be more
socialist in nature can provide universal healthcare because they tax the population at a much
higher rate than in the US. Why does this matter? It matters because regardless of the country
when the government is providing healthcare the quality of the care suffers. Government run
systems tend to be inefficient, have less innovation and more bureaucracy. In other words, it may
cost less in terms of actual money out of pocket, however you still pay in one way or another.
While universal healthcare may be a human right, that right does not entitle you to the most
innovative and specialized care available. Lifesaving operations almost always will be incredibly
expensive, because at its core people value life over anything else so it comes with a higher price
tag. But does that mean that if a person smokes all their life, or drinks heavily and does not take
care of themselves, they are entitled to open heart surgery as a human right?

Another thing to consider is if the government is providing healthcare, can they force you to
make lifestyle changes? Can they force every adult let say above the age of 21 to take have
mandatory check ups twice a year for the purpose of qualifying your eligibility for healthcare?
Imagine if the government used the current height and weight standards (which almost anyone
will tell you are outdated) to base your eligibility. 80 percent of adults in the US would most
likely fail by those standards and now again you have a nation of under insured citizens.

Or maybe the government could do things such as impose higher taxes on your car and
automakers so that walking and bike riding is encouraged. What if sweets and fast food like
McDonalds were as highly regulated and taxed like alcohol and tobacco? People would
eventually be healthier, and so that would make paying for universal healthcare easier, but again
there is a cost involved even if not directly at the hospital or doctors’ office. Ultimately your
right to universal healthcare may come at the cost of some other type of human right or freedom.

On the other side of the discussion is the question of whether healthcare is a luxury. In many
cases and depending upon what services you require, yes it can absolutely be a luxury. Things
like a breast augmentation, hair transplant for men, or liposuction are absolutely luxuries. There
are also lifesaving surgeries and new procedures that are invented everyday that help people live
longer and healthier lives. However, these things come at a higher financial cost and so only the
wealthy can pay for these services. Since we live in the US and we have a capitalism as an
economy, the market will indicate what the cost of a service will be. This allows for the system
to have checks and balances. If your service is too expensive, then people will not pay which will
typically mean you have to charge less. Also, more people will be able to offer the same service
so the cost will be more affordable.

But in my opinion, it is difficult to label all healthcare a luxury is incorrect because that would
mean that healthcare in the same category as an expensive car or as a commodity. Even if it is a
commodity things like preventative medicine or simple procedures should not be so expensive
either for the individual or the government that it cannot be available to anyone regardless of
financial situation. The more preventative measures we take when we are young, would mean
less procedures when we are old. And since less people are requiring those services, the prices
would come down making it seem like less of a luxury.

In my opinion here is where I believe some level of universal healthcare can exist. As a nation
we have the resources to be able to provide every citizen a basic form of healthcare. One that can
address the most immediate concerns of the population. I believe that the government could train
and maintain a group of healthcare professionals just like police or firemen that could provide
basic healthcare to the population for free. This could be done by offering healthcare type classes
in high school or maybe even as part of a government job. This would alleviate some of the
challenges that today’s healthcare industry faces such as malpractice lawsuits or influence from
pharmaceutical companies. Government employees would not be so quick to prescribe
experimental medications or procedures because it could have serious problems such as jail time.
It would be like taking a bride for a public official. In addition government could regulate
pharmaceutical companies and drugs more stricter than they do today.

Ultimately, I believe that the answer to the question is healthcare a human right or luxury lies in
how we look at the question. If we believe it has to be one or the other, we may never find an
answer. However, if we look at the question as maybe it is a little bit of both, we might get closer
to the truth.