Running head: SOCIAL JUSTICE 1
Social Justice: Health
Care Shanelle Redden
July 26, 2020
PADM 550
Dr. Kahlib Fischer
SOCIAL JUSTICE 2
Social Justice is just a broad term describing fair treatment or equal
opportunity for all to include political, social rights and economic resources.
Because of human flaws, we should not put full faith in government to
ensure the fair treatment of all and should know that God has ultimate
power and/or authority (Fischer, K, 2013). There are times where there are
regulations that are created purposely to limit certain groups of people from
obtaining appropriate resources or denies them the same opportunities as
others, known as unequal government regulation. An example of this would
be health care laws that restricts the poor or uninsured from being treated
when necessary. In 1985, the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act
(EMTALA), a federal law requiring emergency rooms to treat all patients
regardless of ability to pay with standard examinations and treatment was
passed (American College of Emergency Physicians, 2020). Regardless of the
EMTALA law, there are still patients who cannot afford insurance who are not
offered the same treatment as those who come in the emergency room with
private insurance. Health care laws are supposed to be fair, but they tend to
discriminate against the indigent population. Such disparities in medical
treatment should be monitored and addressed accordingly as everyone
should be offered the same health care regardless of their financial status.
May
Biblical guidelines and principles
The bible tells us to not be partial or judgmental, to give to those less
fortunate and be righteous. In exact worlds, the scripture reads at Leviticus
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19:15 "you shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor
or defer to the great, but in
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righteousness shall you judge your neighbor." In this situation, giving the
appropriate treatment to the poor is definitely an area needing improvement.
Constitutional guidelines for federal and state involvement
Unfortunately, the U.S. Constitution does not specifically mandate the
government to offer health insurance options to those who cannot afford it,
nor does it “identify a constitutional right to health care” (Swendiman,2010).
We do however, have the right to obtain health care insurance if we can
afford to do so ourselves. Also, under certain circumstances, government
has the obligation to provide medical service to those needing it without
insurance (i.e. prisoners and ER patients per EMTALA). Although the
Constitution does not mandate the government to give out health care, it
also does not say that it should not. Which is why there are several statues
in place offer insurance to those in need such as Medicare, usually given to
those 65 and older or disabled; and Medicaid, given to those who fall under a
specific financial bracket.
Can
The cost of health care in our country will continue to be a hot topic and will
be a hard issue to solve regardless of the political party in control while
addressing the problem. Is it financially feasible? “Simply spending more
money on health care, of course, is not necessarily the best way to deal with
the nation’s health care problems. The United States already spends twice
as much per person on health care as most other
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industrialized nations, and achieves less for it” (Kraft & Furlong, 2018). The
Constitution does give the government power to create a budget to take care
of general welfare
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issues and this is one of them. So, yes health care should be something to
squeeze into our budget. A practical and politically feasible way to approach
the health care issue in a fair matter would be to give everyone an option or
choice when purchasing insurance (Ferniany, 2017) rather than putting
everyone on a certain insurance which they may or not be able to afford,
such as most of the options under Obamacare or ACA. This would make the
whole health care system fair as there would be an increase in benefits for
all, more provider competition (which means more options for the insured),
and lower premiums/deductibles making insurance more affordable and
approachable for those less fortunate.
Should
Yes! We should! No one should be without proper medical treatment simply
because they cannot afford insurance. I believe that it is safe to say that
everyone will agree that medical treatment should be provided to all at least
in some capacity.
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References
EMTALA Fact Sheet. (2020). Retrieved July 26, 2020, from
https://www.acep.org/life-as- a-physician/ethics--legal/emtala/emtala-fact-
sheet/ American College of Emergency Physicians
Ferniany, W. (2017, July 19). A practical, politically feasible solution to
health care reform in America - News. Retrieved July 26, 2020, from
https://www.uab.edu/news/campus/item/8498-a-practical-politically-feasible-
solution-to- health-care-reform-in-america
Fischer, K. (2013). PADM 550: Public policy analysis. Week four, lecture one:
Covenant, sphere sovereignty, and social justice. Liberty University
Kraft, M. E., & Furlong, S. R. (2018). Public policy: Politics, analysis, and
alternatives (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Sage Publications. ISBN:
9781506358154.
Swendiman, K. S. (2010). Health Care: Constitutional Rights and Legislative
Powers. Retrieved July 26, 2020, from
https://www.ncsl.org/documents/health/legpowers.pdf
