Is healthcare a right or a responsibility?

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Is the pandemic going to kick start another universal healthcare debate? Some say it will. I’m curious how other Catholics respond to this question.
 
REPENT said:
Healthcare is not a right because nobody has a right to another man’s labor.
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It may not be a “right”, but it is just that we provide it for our neighbors in need…or is the parable Chirst tells of us in Luke 10:25-37 nonsense?
 
You dont have a right to that either. They can literally refuse you service if they see it fit.

Healthcare is not a right. Rights are something that can never be taken away not something that is given to you. To say you have a right to a doctor’s time and labor sets a precedent to a very slippery slope. It also incentivizes unhealthy people to stay unhealthy
why should I bother eating right or exercising when the taxpayer will just take care of me?
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You could provide for your neighbor out of your own free will you don’t need a big government to force you to do it. Unless you could point out to me in the Bible where Jesus said we need to make a big government mandate to force the taxpayer to subsidize people’s Health Care.
 
One problem is how to define healthcare.
Checkups? Massages? Clean drinking water?
 
REPENT said:
Unless you could point out to me in the Bible where Jesus said we need to make a big government mandate to force the taxpayer to subsidize people’s Health Care.
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Matthew 22:21 and Romans 13:1 come immediately to mind.

But “force” might be a limiting factor in my reply…Jesus of course does not force anyone to do anything. We have free will. But we are called to be Christ like.

Peace and Happy Easter!
 
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Interesting post OS. I think you are touching on what happens when people declare it a right! Then everyone’s rights are someone else’s cross! Then we all fall into the pit together all because of political correctness!
 
Yes, called to be like Christ, not forced or demanded to be like Christ.

But lets look at thise verses:
Matthew 22 21
21 “Caesar’s,” they replied.
Then he said to them, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
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This verse is about paying your taxes and obeying the law. This has nothing to do with healthcare being a right or Jesus telling us to form a big government. Jesus tells us to obey the government, but not to form a bigger one. You also miss the nuances of that verse as well.

You see, currency is made in the image of Ceasar. It is owned by him. Thus, you owe Ceasar for the privilege to use his currency. Eventually it will come back to Ceasar. Now let’s look at the second portion of that verse “and give to God what is God’s”. You, as a human, are made in God’s image. Thus, you owe God for the privilege of having life. Eventually, your life will come back to God one way or another (what He does with you afterwards is for Him to decide).
Romans 13:1
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God
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Again, another call to obey the government. Not a call to expand the government or to demand healthcare be a right. Back than, the people didn’t govern, Ceasar did. Whatever mandate or law he enacted was on him. Now, today, we live in a republic. A government by the people. Thus we have the power to make law. But that doesn’t give us the right to trample on other people and force them to pay out of their own sweat and labor to subsidize other people’s bad choices. If someone wants to get fat and eat pizza everyday, they have the freedom to do so, but they have no right to stay healthy so they can continue to make bad choices.
 
The Gospel can be a tool for good, and in the hands of the nefarious, a tool for evil! If you persuade enough people into thinking they have a right to HC, then you open the door for Satan, Planned Parenthood and all sort of contemptuous lifestyles and behavior!
 
See my comment above. I’m merely describing how evil people operate when the opportunity arises!
 
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REPENT said:
But that doesn’t give us the right to trample on other people and force them to pay out of their own sweat and labor to subsidize other people’s bad choices. If someone wants to get fat and eat pizza everyday, they have the freedom to do so, but they have no right to stay healthy so they can continue to make bad choices.
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So you want the government to micromanage every aspect of people’s lives? You want the ultimate nanny state where the government forces its idea of healthy behavior on you? So - no more cigarettes, no more alcohol, no more pizza (the Pope will be disappointed), no more meat (veganism is healthier), no more riding in cars (cycling is healthier), mandated physical exams (it’s healthier to nip things in the bud), mandated physical exercise, mandated vaccines (wouldn’t want your daughter to catch hpv), maybe even mandated masturbation (since psychologists believe it is healthy). The list goes on. And if your idea of healthy behavior differs from the governments, there are ways to force you. This may be a utopia to you, but I find it terrifying for by body to be the property of the government,
 
I think you don’t understand how these services work. When you pay taxes, you are paying for police officers, firefighters, EMTs, road and bridge repair, etc. You have a right to these services because you paid for them.
 
That isn’t a right. If you receive help from a police officer it’s because they are working as a public servant, to uphold the laws and defend persons and property.
 
It is a right. You paid for these services in your taxes and you have a right to the services you paid for.

I would add: the idea of universal health care doesn’t mean it would be free. it means it would be something you paid for in your taxes.
 
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I think we agree, but we’re explaining it differently. yes, it could be construed as a contractual right since you are paying for it, but it isn’t a right in the natural sense.
 
Exactly, and I don’t want my hard earned taxes to pay for those things that contradict my values and moral convictions. When society embraces socialized healthcare, it will never return to the prior. That is why I will fight to preserve our freedoms.
 
SugarMagnolia said:
Rights are something that can never be taken away”

Of course rights can be taken away! Rights are taken away all the time. After 9/11, rights were taken away. Rights are bestowed by the governing body, not nature, and they can be taken away by that same governing body. Rights are a legal construct.
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You have no idea what a negative or an inalienable right is. A negative right can be voluntarily given up, but it can never truly be taken away. What happened after 9/11 ( the Patriot Act) is the fault of the voter. The voter voluntarily elected those people to make that law. The voter gave up what rights the Patriot Act takes away. The voter can easily take it back if they really wanted to (either with ballots or bullets).
SugarMagnolia said:
Most people do not like being sick and in pain and dying.
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Really? Because I see obese people stuffing their faces everyday wondering why they are fat and unhealthy. I see promiscuous people being promiscuous and catching a Litany of STDs and other diseases related to their lifestyle choices. I see people putting themselves into malnutrition by following whatever fad diet conforms to their ideology. I see chronic cigarette smokers coughing up a lung or have a hole literally poked in their throat so they can breathe and still light up another cigarette. I also see people make stupid decisions and blow off their fingers with firecrackers or hurting themselves while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. People do stupid things all the time. Yeah people get hurt, but it’s their responsibility to take care of themselves not mine. Insurance exists literally for this purpose.
SugarMagnolia said:
No, they can’t. The firefighters cannot come to your house, see it burning to the ground, and say they don’t want to put the fire out.
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Yes they can and have done so.


But the service the firefighters provide is not even close to the service healthcare workers provide. There is a reason why it takes longer to be a doctor or a nurse than it does to be a policeman or fireman.
 
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