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Article Title: Universal Health Care - Ethical Issues in Health Care Reform
Author: Beverly OMalley
Category: Current Affairs, Government, Health
Word Count: 589
Keywords: universal health care,ethical issues,ethical decision making,ethical
issues in health, health care r
Author's Email Address: [email protected]
Article Source: http://www.articlemarketer.com
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Universal health care seems to be a hotly debated topic whenever health care
reform in the United States is discussed.
Those who maintain that health is an individual responsibility do not want a
system that requires them to contribute tax dollars to support fellow citizens
who do not act responsibly in protecting or promoting their own health. They
argue that they want the freedom to choose their own physicians and treatments,
and suggest that government cannot know what is best for them. These people
argue that preserving the current system with improvements to provide better
insurance coverage for citizens who remain uninsured or under insured for their
medical care needs is the only reform that is needed.
Those who believe health care is an individual right support a universal health
care system with the argument that every citizen deserves to have access to the
right care at the right time and that a government's responsibility is to
protect its citizens, sometimes even from themselves.
Two opposing arguments arising from two opposing ideologies. Both are good
arguments but neither can be the supporting argument for implementing or
denying universal health care. The matter must be resolved through an ethical
framework.
Examination of the ethical issues in health care reform would require
consideration of much different arguments than those already presented. Ethical
issues would center on the moral right.
Discussion would begin with not "What is best for me?" but rather "How should
we as a society be acting so that our actions are morally correct?"
Ethics refers to determining right and wrong in how humans relate to one
another. Ethical decision making for health care reform then would require
human beings to act in consideration of our relationships to each other not our
own individual interests.
Examination of some of the common ethical decision making theories can provide
a foundation for a different perspective than one that is solely concerned with
individual rights and freedoms.
Ethical decision making requires that specific questions be answered in order
to decide on whether intended actions are good or morally correct.
Here are some questions that could be used in ethical decision making for
health care reform.
* What action will bring the most good to the most people?
* What action in and of itself is a good act and helps us to fulfill our
duties, obligations, and responsibilities to each other?
* What action in and of itself shows caring and concern for all citizens?
As the answer to all these questions, universal health care can always be
considered the right thing to do.
The United States is in the most advantageous position there is when it comes
to health care reform. They are the only developed country without a national
health care system in place for all citizens. They have the opportunity to
learn from the mistakes that have been made by all the other countries that
have already gone down the universal health care road. They have an opportunity
to design a system that can shine as a jewel in the crown of universal health
care systems everywhere.
However, all ethical decision making is structured around values. In order for
universal health care to be embraced by all citizens in the United States, they
will first have to agree to the collective value of equity and fairness and
embrace the goal of meeting their collective responsibility to each other while
maintaining individual rights and freedoms.
That may prove to be the most difficult obstacle of all.
Beverly Hansen OMalley is a nurse who is passionate about addressing the social
determinants of health. At http://www.registered-nurse-canada.com Beverly
explores the role of the nurse and some of the unique features of the Canadian
health care system
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