What happens when government takes over
health care? In some ways, I like the idea of health care being
available to all citizens. I think any first world country should
have citizens who can have access to health care. However, when the
government is footing the bill, the government can call the shots
about who lives and who dies. Some have called this, “death
panels,” but it is worse than that. Panels don't exist as much as
hard and fast rules that doctors must follow.
In England, doctors may only save
premature babies that weigh one pound or more. To save smaller babies
is considered a drain on state resources, so infants that small are
not provided the medical care other premature babies are offered, and
almost all of them die. Here's a link to an article in which a tiny
baby's life was saved because the medical staff made an accident and
allowed scissors to touch the scale adding weight. So, it is okay
with the government to call the shots over what is human or not,
alive or not, salvageable or not .
Also in England, “Geoffrey Clark, who
sought a seat on the Kent County Council, set off a firestorm of
criticism when he recommended that the National Health Service, the
British government-run health care system, mandate that mothers of
unborn children diagnosed with disabilities have abortions. He said
such abortions would be a big help in reducing the nation’s debt,
by supposedly cutting the medical and other costs associated with
raising such children.” While Mr. Clark was removed from his affiliation with his political party, what is to stop government from taking actions such as
this? After all, they are paying the bill and in the USA, our current
administration dismisses all pro-life concerns. What Mr. Clark
recommended could happen here, probably more easily than in the UK.
Now, to be fair, those who live in the
UK have half the amount of heart attack and stroke that Americans do,
and at half of the cost. So, the United Kingdom is doing something
right and I believe we have a lot to learn from them. Health care is
a mess in this country, but in our desperation for hope, we cannot
end up selling our soul. When a society becomes desensitized to
protecting our most vulnerable, we are losing that soul.
Let's work together in 2013 to stand up for the unborn who cannot speak up for themselves. Humanity depends on it, for without basic respect for life, "humane" has no meaning.
(Granted, corporations and private industry may not be counted on to do a better job either, although more possibility for change exists with them. Ultimately, we need to change our culture's values to assure humane treatment for all.)
(Granted, corporations and private industry may not be counted on to do a better job either, although more possibility for change exists with them. Ultimately, we need to change our culture's values to assure humane treatment for all.)
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