The United States and the Right to Health

Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including…medical care.” The United States does not reflect this ideology. In fact, before the ratification of the Affordable Care Act in 2010, the United States was one of the few, if not the only, developed nation in the world that did not guarantee health coverage for its citizens. The right to health care in the United States has become a source of heated debate. One of the arguments against making health care a legal right in the United States proposes that it shouldn’t be so because it is not listed under the Bill of Rights of the U.S. Constitution. The Bill of Rights lists people’s rights that the government “cannot infringe upon, not services or material goods that the government must ensure for the people.” But shouldn’t health care also be considered a Civil Right? American’s should not have to make the choice between financial ruin and paying for medical treatments needed to stay alive. I argue that the people of the United States, regardless of race, colour, sex, gender, language, socioeconomic status, religion, sexuality, and other status, should not be discriminated against for being sick. The U.S. Constitution, which came into effect on March 4th, 1789, needs to be updated to reflect the needs of Americans in the 21st century. What is a more basic human right, than health?

– A video discussing the road to health reform in the United States under President Barack Obama