What is the “ Right ” to Health Care Worth? It Depends

By MIKE MAGEE In my course this Fall at the University of Hartford, titled “The Right to Health Care and the U.S. Constitution”, we have concentrated on the power of words, of precedents, and the range of interests with which health has been encumbered over several hundred years. The topic has been an eye-opener on many levels. On the most basic level, it is already clear that the value of this “right” depends heavily on your definition of “health.” We’ve highlighted three definitions worth sharing here.  The first is attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt. In 1948, as lead for the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, she defined health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” She also made clear at the time that each of us, as responsible citizens, bore a level of personal responsibility for our own health. By virtue of the choices we make, and the behaviors we exhibit, we raise or lower the chances of being “healthy.” The second voice highlighted was also a woman. She is a physician from Norway, born on April 20, 1939, in Oslo, the daughter of a physician and politician. She received her Medical Degree from the University of Oslo and went on to earn a Master’s in Public Health at Harvard. She served three separate terms as Norway’s Prime Minister, never having fewer than 8 women in her 18-member cabinet. Her name is Gro Brundtland. In 1998, she was co...
Source: The Health Care Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health Policy Public Health health care health care access Mike Magee right to health WHO Source Type: blogs