The US Affordable Care Act (ACA)

According to the US Affordable Care Act (ACA), health care is a fundamental human right, and every individual should have medical insurance coverage (Orszag, 2016). But, in practice, health-care services in the United States remain a luxury. The majority of Americans do not have full access to health-care services. In 2008, US President Barack Obama declared health care to be a right for all citizens; yet, recent medical statistics show otherwise (Obama, 2016).

Since 2010, ACA-related reforms have resulted in a rise in health-care coverage. In fact, 22 million Americans have acquired medical insurance coverage since 2010. (Orszag, 2016). Nevertheless, this leaves more than 50 million US citizens without the insurance cover. The US government guarantees all its citizens with free education, protection by the military, access to police and fire services and the like. However, the nation has not committed all of its efforts and resources to ensure that all citizens have health care coverage and access.

The US government has put across various programs to improve the health care access to the nationals. But, the existing strategies cannot be enrolled by all people because, most of them cannot afford health care insurance (Orszag, 2016). In fact, the existing programs favor only a particular group of individuals, leaving the rest uninsured, doomed to die without primary medical aid. Hence, healthcare in the US remains to be a privilege more than a right.

Part 2

Health care should be recognized as a right, but not a privilege. Every person in any country should have a right to access the health care they need, regardless of their financial status. The health care coverage should not be pegged with the insurance cover. Some people are not employed, while others may lose their employment contracts. As a result, this will limit their access to health care services.

Several bodies have brought across bills to support medical care. For instance, in 1943, President Roosevelt proposed a second bill of rights that supported efficient access to health care services, which led to people enjoying good health (Gardner, 2011). The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) published by the UN stipulated that everyone is entitled to a standard living, with access to proper medical care (Gardner, 2011). It is ethically correct for a government to ensure good health status for every citizen irrespective of their financial abilities.

Good health care saves lives and makes a population more productive. A right to health care can improve the public health, making everyone to live a decent life. Therefore, health care should be considered as a moral or legal right for every person in any given state.

References

Gardner, D. (2011). Deconstructing health care reform. Nursing Economics, 29(3), 148-9, 147.

Obama, B. (2016). United States health care reform: progress to date and next steps. Jama, 316(5), 525-532.

Orszag, P. R. (2016). US health care reform: cost containment and improvement in quality. Jama, 316(5), 493-495.