My Moral Obligation?

On Wednesday, August 19th, Mr. Obama reached out to liberal and progressive religious figures to help spread the “good news” about health care reform and to set the record straight. During that conference call, he addressed those who were “bearing false witness” and spreading lies regarding his heath care plan. He remarked that the numerous false claims were “fabrications that have been put out there in order to discourage people from meeting what I consider to be a core ethical and moral obligation…I am my brother’s keeper, I am my sister’s keeper, and in the wealthiest nation on Earth right now, we are neglecting to live up to that call.”

A moral and ethical obligation…really? Is it a right of every American to have affordable and quality heath coverage? I would argue, no. It is not a moral right for all Americans (or those living in America) to have health coverage. It is a privilege to live in the wealthiest nation on Earth, and with that privilege comes an opportunity to receive the world’s best heath care.

(First of all, there is a difference between heath care and health coverage. Heath care is the treatment and management of illnesses, as well as the preservation of your health through services offered by medical professionals. Health coverage, or health insurance, is insurance that pays for medical expenses. Individuals pay either a premium or taxes to help protect themselves from high or unexpected heath care expenses. Mr. Obama believes it is the moral obligation of government to provide affordable, quality health coverage.)

Those in support of health reform have been asking questions…what about the young couple who have to take out a loan to pay for the birth of their first child because they can’t afford the cost? What about the recently laid-off father who now has to pay for a sudden and unexpected surgery of a sick child? What about the single mother working three part-time jobs and cannot afford to get her own heath insurance? Why should I have to pay for the upgraded cochlear implant that I want, but is too expensive?

According to Obama, I am my sister’s keeper, and it is my moral obligation to help pay for her surgery, health insurance and any future coverage that is too expensive for her or her children … all while paying for my own. But I see a glaring problem with this. I cannot control how my sister lives her life. She may choose to smoke for forty years or maintain a steady diet of Red Bull and Krispy Kremes while working as a crab fisherman off the coast of Alaska. How she lives and the risks she takes are her choice. It is not, then, my obligation to pay for her when she gets sick or injured. Nor is it her responsibility to cover my medical expenses if I decide to go mountain biking around the edges of a quarry in the rain (which is very risky…believe you me).

As my sister’s keeper, I would encourage her to quit smoking, eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly. Or to wait to have children until she and her husband have a steady job that provides heath benefits, or to get rid of her monthly cable (gasp!) and internet bill in order to pay her monthly premium. The point is, I would do a much better service for my sister by encouraging her to make better financial and health decisions.

Of course not all health care needs are a result of food choices or job-related accidents. The cost of prescription medications are high, employers sometimes drop coverage for their employees, some individuals have pre-existing conditions which insurance companies are not willing to cover, and many doctors practice defensive medicine which quadruples your hospital bill. To all of that, I would say TOUGH.

Did I just say that? It sounds so…heartless.

We do not have a perfect medical system in America. No one, including myself, is arguing for the status quo. But what I cannot get passed is the amount of people interviewed on television, showing up at townhall meetings with signs, and writing on blogs who have their own problem. Or they know of Sally Smith’s problem that lives down the road.

I truly believe that in America, given the chance, people will figure out a way to take care of their own. Once upon a time, Americans did this. Previous generations lived through two world wars and the Great Depression. America survived the Jimmy Carter years which produced a worse recession than the one we have today (including unemployment rates that neared 16%). But Americans rose to the challenge each and every time. And we are still – still - living in the most prosperous country in the world.

So I say again, TOUGH. As Thomas Paine said, these are the times that try men’s souls. Find a way. The government must not intervene to fix every problem we encounter. If citizens believe it is the obligation of the government to pay their hospital bills, there is no end to what the government should, and will, control.

Where is the passion to make it on your own? To find a way, when there seems to be no way? To go from rags to riches, without a government handout? In the words of George Washington, “perseverance and spirit have done wonders in all ages.” And in this age, I put my trust in the average American to find their way rather than trust the government to find the way for us. I take that as my moral obligation.

For a great article:
The Claremount Institute, "Is Heath Care a Right?"
http://www.claremont.org/publications/crb/id.1607/article_detail.asp