Reasons Why Healthcare Should Be Considered as a Human Right

Introduction

Human rights are a compilation of moral principles that are of paramount significance to all human beings. As such, there are several reasons why the right to health needs to be safeguarded as a universal human right by all the pertinent stakeholders. According to the report released by the US Census Bureau, there are more than 33 million United States citizens who do not have health insurance (National Center for Health Statistics). Thus, United States is ranked among the few member countries of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) that have not adopted a universal health coverage for its citizens. It is in the public domain that all governments should be able to address the health requirements of its population. Arguably, the right to universal health will play a vital role in reducing medical bankruptcies, improve dissemination of health care, and reduce the overall expenditure on health just to mention a few advantages. As such, I uphold that health care should be regarded as a human right that all governments should offer and support. The following facts expound on why health care should be considered to be a universal human right.

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The founding fathers of the United States and the American constitution support the right to health care.

In the declaration of independence, the American citizens were granted "unalienable rights" such as the "right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Apparently, such rights require individuals to be healthy to preserve life and pursue happiness. Moreover, one of the purposes that lead to the formulation of the American constitution, as outlined in the Preamble is "to promote the general welfare" of the citizens. Therefore, it is the governments' responsibility to promote the general well-being of its citizens which includes the offering of standard health care to all.

Instituting right to health will play a central role in lowering the health care cost in the United States.

Conferring to a study that was conducted in 2013, a universal single-payer health care system in which all the citizens are entitled to health care can lower the government expenditure on healthcare by 592 billion dollars within one year and up to 1.8 trillion dollars in a decade (National Center for Health Statistics). This is mainly because the system will lower the cost of administrative and prescription drugs. Moreover, according to reports published by American Medical Association in 2016, the private health insurance plans spend more than 11.8% of the premiums on seeking the administrative costs as compared to the public health care programs which account for only 6.1% (National Center for Health Statistics). Astonishingly, a country such as Canada, which offers a comprehensive and universal health care coverage to all her citizens, spends half as much per capita on the provision of healthcare in the United States. Additionally, a nation such as the United Kingdom which offers a right to health to all citizens spends only 41.5% of the total amount that the United States spends per capita on health. Borrowing from such examples, it is clear that provisional of universal health care will significantly reduce government expenditure on health.

A right to health care will eradicate medical bankruptcies.

According to the United States Economic bureau, at least 62% of the total U.S.A bankruptcies in 2015 were related to medical expenses, and 79% of these bankruptcies were filed by individuals who were enrolled on a medical insurance scheme. Moreover, in 2014, there were more than 31 million American citizens who were contacted by the collection agencies concerning a medical bill. Therefore, it is clear that if all the American citizens were provided with health care using the single-payer system, the problem of medical bankruptcies would be eradicated entirely since the government and not individual citizens would pay the medical bill.

A right to health could reduce deaths by saving more lives and extending life expectancy.

Conferring to the research conducted by the University of Harvard Researchers, lack of health insurance leads to more than 44,789 deaths per year, a factor that contributes into a 40% increased risk of deaths among individuals who are not insured since they cannot obtain quality health care. Additionally, national health census shows that more than 13,000 deaths occur among individuals aged 54-68 years due to lack of health care coverage (Bruchhausen 59). Outstandingly, a study conducted by Commonwealth established that the United States ranked at the bottom of the 16 wealthiest countries in terms of preventable mortality. In developed nations such as Italy, France, Israel, Norway, and Spain, all states with right to health, citizens live 4-6 years longer than those in the United States.

Right to health is an internationally recognized right that must be respected by all.

On the dawn of December 10, 1948, the United States in collaboration with 47 other nations adopted, endorsed and signed the United Nations declaration of human rights. The document concisely articulated that, "everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of oneself and one's family, including... medical care" (Bradley and Cynthia). Moreover, in the year 2005, the united states and other member states of the world health organization ratified the world health assembly resolution 58.33 which reaffirmed that all individuals should have access to health care services and that they should not suffer from financial hardship when obtaining health services. Additionally, according to Lancet peer-reviewed articles, the right to health features are not just vital for judicious management, humanitarianism, and justice but are also a government obligation under the rule of law. Importantly, as of 2014, more than half of the world's countries had a right to health care in their constitution. Therefore, it is judicious to adopt universal right to health for all citizens.

The right to health will ensure affordability of the healthcare services.

Conferring to a study conducted by the consumer reports in 2012, catering for the healthcare expenditure was the top problem that most of the American households struggled to meet. Moreover, the reports established that the cost of family health insurance premiums skyrocketed to 80% within a decade. Alarmingly, the report published by Kaiser family foundation shows that 28% of American households have had a problem clearing their medical bills while 58% of these households have had to delay or not seek medical care due to high costs of the services (Bruchhausen 46). These statistics have caused proposition of a bill (HR 676) on single-payer health care system in the United States under which every citizen could receive guaranteed access to government-financed medical care.

Providing right to health will boost the nation's economic productivity.

When citizens have access to health care, they lead a healthy life which translates to increased availability of human resources in commercial production. Notably, collaborative research conducted by the University of Colorado and University of Pennsylvania indicates that workers who are enrolled on a health insurance scheme miss an average of 4.9 fewer days than individuals without the coverage, this is primarily because individuals with insurance covers can cheaply access health care and tend to seek regular medical checkup. Moreover, according to Unites states bureau of labor statistics, the United States of America losses between 65 and 130 billion dollars annually due to diminished worker productivity which can be attributed to power health and premature deaths of talented and energetic of uninsured citizens (Bielefeldt 89). In this light, in his address to the world on January 14, 2014, the president of the World Bank claimed that nations should provide health care to its citizens as a measure of boosting economic growth.

The right to health will lead to subsequent improvement of public health.

According to the study published by the Lancet, that evaluated health data from over 100 countries, evidence indicates that universal healthcare coverage will lead to increased access of health care and thus improve health, especially among the underprivileged citizens. Compared to Canada, US citizens are 33% less likely to have a personal doctor, 25% more likely to have undiagnosed conditions, and 50% more likely not to afford the needed health care than their Canadian counterparts who have government supported universal right to health. Owing to this, there are more than 11.7 million un-insured working-age Americans who have chronic maladies such as heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension that are undertreated thus leading to early disability and even death.

U.S.A is a wealthy nation with enough resources to provide universal health care rights to all citizens.

A majority of the European countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and France have a lower gross domestic product GDP per capita than the United States. Nonetheless, these nations provide exclusive right to health to all its citizens. In 2012, at least 47.9 million people in the U.S.A did not have a health insurance cover and even after the introduction of the Obama care reforms in 2013 health care evaluation reports indicates that more than 31 million citizens are still uninsured (Bielefeldt 116). Despite the significant number of uninsured citizens, the USA government spent an average of 8511 dollars per person in 2012. Such a value is 2.5 times more than the average amount paid by member countries of OECD, which is 3,322 dollars. Therefore, with such a high level of spending on health care, the United States should be able to provide a right to quality health care to all citizens.

Adopting right to health will be beneficial to private business enterprises.

Considering that more than 59.5% of American citizens receive their health coverage at the expense of their organization, legislation of the universal right to health care will cause employers to significantly reduce the amount of cash paid to health insurance policies. As such, adoption of a single-payer healthcare system is estimated to reduce the employers' total labor spending by an average of 11.5%. Such a saving will play a vital role in increasing the profitability of enterprises, favor expansion, and thus overall economic growth (Bielefeldt 103).

The right to health will encourage entrepreneurship.

According to the United States labor statistics report of 2014, many individuals fear to engage in entrepreneurship due to the fear that they will lose their existing health insurance that is provided by the employer. In 2012, Kauffman-RAND Institute for Entrepreneurship Public Policy noted that there would be a 33.5% increase in new domestic business due to the implementation of Obamacare health insurance (Bradley and Cynthia). Additionally, the study highlights that provision of universal health care could lead to 2-3.7% increase in self-employment in the United States.

The right to health is imperative for the establishment of a just society.

In her attempt to establish a fair and just society, the United States provides free and subsidized public education, law enforcement, maintenance and upgrading of roads and other social amenities. Therefore, provisional of health care should be added to these services. It is imperative for the society to accept that the delivery of universal health care preserves for the people the ability to participate in the social, political and economic development of the society which sustains them as beneficiaries of the government projects

To sum up, the human right to health requires all citizens to have access...