English 1302
20 October 2014
Poverty Speaks for Itself
In some parts of the world, multiple diseases are still rampant. Despite the incredible advances in medicine these places still remain susceptible. Some of these diseases perished by the effort of human kind. However, scientists were not completely successful in treating some illnesses. For example, ailments such as Ebola, STDs, HIV, Dengue fever and Malaria are ubiquitous, yet not all are curable. Scholars have discussed that a major part in why such diseases are not treated in time is that many people are too poor to act and protect themselves from these sicknesses. Poverty is one of many reasons people are getting sick, and also it is the most affecting. Poor people are at a disadvantage, because they cannot provide most of their basic necessities for them to live their lives and deal with their daily routines. Thus, they can’t aid themselves properly when they are infected by a disease. Although people might argue that there are several causes that are the reason of mass infection of serious illnesses, I claim that poverty is the root cause of these illnesses because poverty leads to lack of medical attention, absence of public protection the, and the contamination of water.
Many poor families and children are eligible for health insurance and Medicaid. However, not all of those people are aware of this fact. As Mercedes Muñoz who edited the book, “Is Poverty a Serious Threat?” stated that “According to Census data, more than 15 million “uninsured” individuals reside in households with annual incomes of less than $25,000. Most meet the income test for Medicaid or S-CHIP eligibility, but they are not enrolled”… She continues by stating that, “many—perhaps most—of these 15 million “uninsured” persons are folks who have not sought health care” (Muñoz 51). The editor here proves that poor people can be medically insured and could be treated for their infections and diseases. Also, the editor shows that most of poor people could afford the medical insurance if they actually demanded health care. In spite of this point being very true, the poor still haven’t gotten more medical or physical attention. The world should acknowledge that poor people do not have the right resources to even know about what they can and cannot obtain. Three major points are being displayed to verify that poor people are the main target of infections, ignorance and not having a clean source of vital water.
Poverty is like a pillar for infections: It is the base of why people are not surviving simple conditions and disorders. Medicare and insurance tend to keep people safe and somewhat protected from various infectious deceases. However, being poor and residing is an underprivileged district can cause a surge in deteriorating health conditions, and premature deaths. According to John Mullahy, and Barbara L. Wolfe who wrote the article, “Health Policies for the Nonelderly Poor”, mentioned in their article that “when poor people become sick, they have less access to health care and the quality of the care that they do obtain appears to be inferior” … They continue by stating that “poverty results in substandard housing or poor living that may lead to ill health” (Mullahy and Wolfe 41). This proves that the minority of poor people with disorders or deficiencies are not being treated within the normal standards, but within a depraved grade of consideration. Also, the authors demonstrate that being poor will lead to a lower level of medical assistance. Some people might consider that the actions taken towards poor people medically is immoral. Each year more and more people are dying because of their status in the community; if they are labeled as poor they will get less therapeutic support and fewer attention. Poverty is a hardship that many people face, placing them in a condition that might not make them eligible for the appropriate level of aid.
Many young children are becoming victims to poverty and its outcomes year after year. As John Mullahy, and Barbara L. Wolfe also mentioned in their article that “The health of nonpoor children has improved considerably over the past few decades, that of poor children hardly at all.” …They continue by stating that “Medicare does not cover the majority of poor and near-poor adults and children” (Mullahy and Wolfe 41). This validates that disadvantaged children are at a higher risk of catching these mass infectious diseases because of the negligible level of health service they receive. Also the authors reveals the fact that poor children are not being taken care of, and that their situation has not been resolved for decades. Innocent children are brought to this world where poverty is becoming a tyrant and controlling most of their lives especially from the medical field. Unfortunately, poverty is growing larger as the days go by, and not a lot of children are surviving because of the gap left by poverty.
Poor people are suffering from negligence and ignorance of the public and regrettably not getting enough attention. According to José Barry Azoh who wrote the article “Social Sciences Research On Infectious Diseases Of Poverty: Too Little And Too Late?", he states that “These diseases and poverty are trapped in a sort of permanent relationship of a double layer of infections and poverty, in which pathogens infect people living in persistent conditions of poverty... Many of these pathologies have been referred to as NTDs for diverse reasons…” He continues by stating that “They have, for the most part, received lesser investment… in terms of proper attention and actions, or have simply been ignored by the afflicted communities, media, governments, re- search funders, the pharmaceutical industry, and the rest of the world.”(Azoh 1) This is important because the author shows how many individuals can be biased when the situation comes to poor people and families, thinking that they are of a lower class, not worthy, and do not deserve much. Also, the author views that poor people are being socially ignored by basically everyone, getting lesser attention every day. Poverty and diseases have a bond that is sadly somewhat unbreakable, poor people are not able to afford medication or Medicare, hence, they are neglected by society and left uncured. People say money makes the world go around, if you are poor and have nothing to afford to keep yourself safe, you will be forgotten and will not be able to survive in the new world. It seems that the less fortunate people are being trampled on so that the privileged can get what they desire. Unfortunately, protection for subordinate individuals is fading away.
Water is the source of life that people depend on the most to survive. Nevertheless, poor countries and people are mostly the main target for limitation of water and its sources. As P. K. Geol who wrote the book “Water Pollution: Causes, Effects and Control”, stated that “On the other hand the poor and developing countries have overpopulation, increasing their domestic wastes and sewage. Though these countries do not use much resources and energy, but short finances make a constrain on the treatment of wastes, which are often disposed off untreated cause severe water pollution problems” (Goel 2). The author indicates that not many people can get a reliable source of fresh water to fill out their needs. Also, he points out that people who suffer from poverty tend to receive spoiled and highly-polluted water. The author also grasps the idea of low salaries and wages, indicating that many people in these countries cannot afford to buy clean water or manage to pay for an uncontaminated water source. Poor people in these countries are struggling to get some pure water, however, their low incomes is somewhat interfering with their chances of getting some. Not being able to obtain fresh water can lead to dehydration which links water contamination with medical issues together.
Water shortage is a catastrophe that we are modernly confronting. Human beings are extremely dependent on water in their daily routine: taking baths, cleaning food, and most importantly drinking it. All species are reliant on water, and the amount they are getting is declining rapidly. In their article “Water poverty indicators: conceptual problems and policy issues”, François Molle and Peter Mollinga mention that “Since humans are part of the ecosystem, they are also affected when the amount, quality and timing of water flows necessary to support ecosystems is not ensured. Loss of biodiversity, health impacts from pollution, aesthetic degradation and other negative impacts are caused by such water scarcity” (Molle and Mollinga 530). This is important because water is very essential for all creatures, and water scarcity is disturbing the ecosystem dramatically. Also, they signify that this is a global problem and it needs to be resolved sooner than later because it will affect people and especially poor ones. Water is being abused to the limit that people are becoming unaware of how much water they are using and how much water is being wasted. Water is one of so many things that people take for granted, and no one feels the value of something until they lose it which relates to how poor people feel because they are mostly deprived of unpolluted water.
In conclusion, poverty is a serious and a universal problem that many people are challenging today. Poverty has roots that spread throughout the world causing chaos, disorder and confusion. Many obstacles confront poor people and these obstacles vary from privation of remedial care, absence of community security, and the corruption of their clean drinking water source. Because poor people most of the time do not have the privilege to get appropriate health assistance, they receive little to no help. Poor people do not have a rank that is high enough to seek people’s attention. Sadly, much of the world does not have access to clean water. In order for people to get out of poverty, these three major points must be addressed by the world community to attempt and diminish the existence of poverty.
Works Cited
Azoh Barry, José. "Social Sciences Research on Infectious Diseases of Poverty: Too Little and Too Late?." Plos Neglected Tropical Diseases 8.6 (2014): 1-4. .Academic Search Complete. Web. 8. Oct. 2014.
Goel, P.K. Water Pollution: Causes, Effects And Control. New Age International, 2006. Print.
Molle, Francois, and Peter Mollinga. "Water Poverty Indicators: Conceptual Problems and Policy Issues." Water policy 5.5 (2003): 529-44. Google scholar. Web. 8. Oct. 2014.
Mullahy, John, and Barbara L. Wolfe, “Health Policies for the Nonelderly Poor.” Understanding Poverty (2001): 273-313. Google scholar. Web. 8. Oct. 2014.
Muñoz, Mercedes. Is Poverty a Serious Threat?. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Print.