Universal health care seems to be a hotly debated topic whenever health care reform in the United States is discussed. Those who maintain that health is an individual responsibility do not want a system that requires them to contribute tax dollars to support fellow citizens who do not act responsibly in protecting or promoting their own health. They argue that they want the freedom to choose their own physicians and treatments, and suggest that government cannot know what is best for them. These people argue that preserving the current system with improvements to provide better insurance coverage for citizens who remain uninsured or under insured for their medical care needs is the only reform that is needed.

Those who believe health care is an individual right support a universal health care system with the argument that every citizen deserves to have access to the right care at the right time and that a government’s responsibility is to protect its citizens, sometimes even from themselves.

Two opposing arguments arising from two opposing ideologies. Both are good arguments but neither can be the supporting argument for implementing or denying universal health care. The matter must be resolved through an ethical framework.

Examination of the ethical issues in health care reform would require consideration of much different arguments than those already presented. Ethical issues would center on the moral right. Discussion would begin with not “What is best for me?” but rather “How should we as a society be acting so that our actions are morally correct?”. » Read more: Universal Health Care – Ethical Issues in Health Care Reform