Is Health Care a Right?
Although it is great thing that many
organizations step in to support individuals and families in health emergencies,
by covering their medical bills or supporting them financially, these
organizations shouldn’t have to exist in the first place. While researching
about my blog post topic, I came across this very interesting article in The
New Yorker, which raises the question if health care is a right? As you might
know, due to my country’s history; pride and patriotism aren’t a huge thing in
Germany and I wouldn’t consider myself a proud German. In fact, I don’t think
any of my friends or family members are proud to be German. However, when
thinking about this blog post and what I wanted to write about, health care, I
realized that I am extremely glad and fortunate to live in a country and
society, in which mandatory, comprehensive health care coverage is a
fundamental given circumstance for every citizen. The times where I didn’t go
to the doctor where usually times where I knew I had a mild cold, nothing that
a few days of bed rest wouldn’t cure. When my loved ones got sick I was worried
that they were in pain or that they would need surgery because they were
seriously injured. I was never worried that we weren’t able to afford certain
treatments, that we weren’t able to pay our entire bill or that we were simply
not covered by an insurance plan at all. I never had to worry.
In the U.S., the debate about health care
often evolves around government control and responsibility and is marked by
opposing political convictions. I find it really hard to rationally understand
this debate because I have grown up in a country in which having health care is
something so normal, so absolutely omni – present and non – negotiable that I
never really thought about a different situation. The possibility of having no
universal health care coverage was simply never a topic of debate. For those
who fear that universal health care will inevitably lead to “socialism”, rest
assure that Germany has long adapted a universal health care system and I can
testify that we remain a safe bastion of capitalism. The idea of not wanting a
universal health care system is so strange to me, as having universal health
care has always been and continues to be such a crucial part of our reality as
a society.
By no means should this be a post saying
how great Germany is and all that it does, as there are many things worth
criticizing in Germany and there are countless areas that need drastic
improvement and change. It just happens to be that the German health care
system, while it is by far not the best in the world, works quite well. And
since I have lived all my life in Germany I can only talk about this system.
There is no NGO in Germany which main
mission it is to provide thorough health care because frankly, everyone in
Germany is eligible for being covered by health care. One could say that the
German health care system is based on a principle of solidarity. “What does solidarity mean in the context of health
insurance? Germany’s largest health insurer, AOK, defines it this way: ‚The
wealthier pay for less well-off citizens, the younger for the elderly, singles
for families, and often, men for women.’ As a result, almost nobody (less
than 0.1 percent of the population as of 2015) lacks health insurance.“ The
German health insurance system is mostly public, however it is not state – run
(like the National Health Service in the UK). More than 100 different health
insurers, also known as sickness funds, compete for members in “Germany’s
comparatively decentralized system.” It might be interesting to learn that
these sickness funds are non-profit, non-governmental organizations that
operate autonomously. However, the government does play a key role in setting
standards. All sickness funds “are required by law to offer the same
comprehensive benefits package, which covers virtually all health care needs.
But it is a non-governmental body, the Federal Joint Commission, which decides
what benefits are covered.”
For most Germans, their health insurance
contributions are deducted from their paychecks. The amount that Germans have
to pay, 14.6 percent of the salary, is split in half, between the employee and
the employer. But coverage is not dependent on the employer, so when Germans
change or lose their jobs, nothing changes in their health insurance. The idea is not that one group pays for the rest. The idea is that
those who earn more (the fact that salaries are often very disproportionate to
the job done is a different one), pay more and those who earn less, pay less.
Yes, not everyone pays the same but not everyone earns the same. Still,
everyone contributes his or her share. Thinking that you will always have the
means to provide for your own health care is a very foolish thing to do. Life
is unpredictable and loosing your job, a severe illness of you or one of your
family members or any other circumstance can quickly lead to the situation in
which you yourself will be dependent on the mandatory health care. The idea
that everyone could need coverage at one point, without being able to provide
for it, is at the core of the German health care system.
Furthermore, the sickness funds “do not
limit which doctors their beneficiaries can see, as is often the case with private
health insurance in the United States.” Private
insurance exists but is controversial. Anyone who makes more than €57,600 a
year can opt out of the public system and purchase a private policy. In private
insurances, contributions are not attached and measured to people’s salaries.
Everyone pays the same sum, leading to a situation in which very rich patients
are advantaged. Private insurance often comes with faster service; however, the
same doctors attend to private patients as to public patients.
Coming
back to the question if there is a right to health care. I will borrow Atul
Gawande (author of The New Yorker article) word’s: “Oxford political philosopher
Henry Shue But argued, rights are as much about our duties as about our
freedoms. Even the basic right to physical security—to be free of threats or
harm—has no meaning without a vast system of police departments, courts, and
prisons, a system that requires extracting large amounts of money and effort
from others. In his analysis, basic rights include physical security, water,
shelter, and health care. Meeting these basics is, he maintained, among
government’s highest purposes and priorities.” Despite
Germany’s turbulent history, the current German health care system has been
working pretty well about 125 years. While I personally do believe that it is
the government’s duty to provide health care coverage for all citizens, I think
it is an even bigger duty of citizens to accept and comply with the idea that
providing health care for everyone is a basic human right and responsibility. As
someone who has grown up in a country and society in which yes, health care
coverage is considered to be a human right, I am truly interested in hearing
your approach on this matter.
Layla,
ReplyDeleteYour post is quite inspiring, and I honestly wish that more people shared your opinions on universal health care. As a recipient of Medicare; which is America’s attempt at universal health care, I have been in constant fear that one of these days I will be losing my health insurance. In the past year, health care has once again been a hot button issue and reform has been the target of the current administration. As someone whose family’s medical history isn’t the best, I live in fear that one of these days I won’t be able to afford treatment for whatever may come to ail me. A problem which has plagued my family since I was a young child.
As I’ve mentioned before, my mother was diagnosed with cancer in 2007. However, her diagnosis could have been less drastic if she had gone to the doctor sooner. Given her family history of cysts, she waived off the lump in her breast as a minor inconvenience until a family friend, who was a nurse, insisted on her having it checked out. The diagnosis was as bad as it could’ve been: stage 4 breast cancer. Years later when I asked my mother about why she had waited so long to get checked out- why she hadn’t gone to regular mammograms and gotten regular screenings- she explained to me that neither her nor my dad had good health coverage at the time. They were running the family business, a small grocery store in Washington D.C., and so they received coverage from a private insurer- an insurer that barely covered funds for regular doctor and dentist visits. My mother had been afraid that if the diagnosis was breast cancer, then we wouldn’t be able to afford the new house we had just bought and the “nice” school supplies that she wanted me to have when I changed schools, much less her medical bills. If we had had better coverage, then she wouldn’t have been so worried, and I can’t help thinking that that might’ve saved her life. Even without the coverage, she still underwent treatment and to this day there are unpaid medical bills. Medical bills that have luckily been forgiven, and yet I still won’t forget receiving the last one after she passed away.
More recently, it has been my dad that deals with a lack of health coverage. Although he receives benefits from his job, they do not cover the cost of his needed dental surgeries. In fact, just last week I once again insisted that he go to the dentist to get a tooth that had popped out of his jaw looked at. His reply? “If I go do that then they’ll probably try to make me do another surgery. We can’t afford that right now.”
My family is considered a part of America’s middle class. I am unable to demonstrate “extreme financial need” and yet my family has endured the shortcomings of this country’s health system for most of my life. If my experiences are to warrant any thought, then we should think about what this says about the lower class. Those who can barely afford the clothes on their backs cannot afford health care. They cannot afford the basic right to live. That is why I also believe in the work that many nonprofits are doing to aid the homeless- give them the means to receive proper health care, provide them with clinics to go to, return to them their humanity. I cannot wait to see the day that America’s healthcare system can match that of Germany’s, a day where one essential human right can be returned to the people.
Layla,
ReplyDeleteYour post was intriguing to read. I’ve been abroad a few times, but have never lived long term in another country (though I have always wondered what it’s like). Whenever you mention your experiences growing up in Germany it always grabs my attention. While I was aware they had universal healthcare, I was not aware it had been around for 125 years!
There are a number of reasons America doesn’t have universal healthcare, all of which I do not fully understand (to tell you the truth). But the fact remains that we are the only industrialized nation without universal healthcare. We also have the highest healthcare spending in the world (in absolute terms and as a share of GDP), along with one of the highest levels of government spending on healthcare per person (https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/health-costs-how-the-us-compares-with-other-countries). I’m not here to advocate for a specific solution and battle out numbers, but I will certainly discuss my view on the principle of universal healthcare further.
I fully agree health care is a human right and everyone should have access to it. Anyone that disagrees confuses me, and I wonder if they have ever been in a position where their future health was uncertain. Jaclyn, your story is touching and I think you and your family are very brave. I hope one day you can go on to obtain better health insurance. I can relate to your struggles though, as my mom has been on the phone countless times with our insurance company haggling them to cover bills. While I will still be under my parents’ health insurance for a few more years, I am honestly a little afraid when the day comes that I need to manage my own. Dealing with health care in this country confuses me and when I often hear of how much healthcare costs and the controversy of profit in the industry I begin to wonder if this situation reflects a bit of American greed.
Last year I watched a documentary about water called FLOW, which was about the growing privatization of the world’s dwindling fresh water supply. Privatizing water has led to many issues in regards to pollution, politics, and human rights. Many people have been exploited and environments severely damaged due to this phenomenon. It’s honestly shocking to me how our bodies are literally made up of 60% water and some still don’t consider it a human right. Water is blue gold that I feel like a lot of people take for granted. I think healthcare is treated in a similar way. It is essential to the preservation of life, or at the very least, a better quality of life. Perhaps this is going too far, but America’s Constitution says everyone the right to “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”. Water is essential to life. Similarly, good health is essential to life. Yet many are still denied adequate access to each.
Lastly, Layla, I don’t think you should have any negative thoughts on being German. No country is perfect, and the past was once dark, but there is still a lot for you to be proud of. Your country is beautiful, full snow kissed mountains, rolling valleys, and majestic architecture. You have delicious, clean food and the most luscious chocolate. Germany is technologically innovative, and is leading the world in being environmentally conscious. There are many other things I could point out that you probably already know as well, but my point is just that you should be proud :)