Universal healthcare a basic right underpinned by a sense of solidarity

The Bishop of Rome has stressed that healthcare is a basic human right. Healthcare, said Francis, is “not a consumer good, but rather a universal right, and therefore access to healthcare services cannot be a privilege”.

May 26, 2016

By Anil Netto
The Bishop of Rome has stressed that healthcare is a basic human right. Healthcare, said Francis, is “not a consumer good, but rather a universal right, and therefore access to healthcare services cannot be a privilege”.

His remarks come at a time when private hospitals are flourishing in Malaysia and elsewhere, and “medical tourism” (for those who can afford it, of course) has captured the imagination of economic planners.

Healthcare, especially at the most basic level, noted Francis, is denied in many parts of the world, he said. “It is not a right for all, but rather it is still a privilege reserved to the few, to those who can afford it.”

The neoliberal trend towards privatisation to higher healthcare costs, not only in private hospitals but also public hospitals. Hospital support services such as catering and maintenance and even the supply of drugs to the hospitals have been privatised, raising the cost of these services to the government. What’s more, new wings have been opened in government hospitals, catering to so-called “full-paying” patients.

That’s not all. Even government-linked companies have got into the act with stakes in ‘private hospitals’. This creates a conflict of interest. If the government owns public hospitals, how can it, at the same time, have a stake in private hospitals? What incentive does the government have to improve public hospitals when it can make more profits by neglecting such improvements so that more people, even those who can ill-afford it, will be encouraged to seek treatment in private hospitals?

Francis lamented that in many parts of the world, “Access to healthcare services, treatment and medicines remains a mirage. The poorest are unable to pay and are excluded from hospital services, even the most essential primary care.”

One of the key problems in Malaysia is the relatively low level of government funding of our general hospitals. This has led to an inability of these hospitals to retain trained, skilled and experienced personnel, with many moving to the private sector for higher pay.

Similarly, the promotion of medical tourism by economic planners encourages more private hospitals to be set up that earn lucrative profits, and this too leads to an exodus of skilled personnel from public hospitals. Private hospitals may also pinch experienced staff from government hospitals.

Francis has also lashed out at employers who do not provide their employees with proper healthcare. He described their attitude in these words: “I will pay you this much, without vacation time, without health insurance, all under the table — but I will become rich!”

We might not see the relevance of his words in Malaysia as it is not the practise among many employers to provide private healthcare insurance. Instead, we have employers’ EPF contributions, but it is clear that these are insufficient to cover the needs of private sector workers when they retire.

For many retired workers, EPF savings are likely to be wiped out in a matter of five to ten years. What happens then? Even retired civil servants with fixed pensions must be worried. Can our government hospitals cope and if so, what kind of quality of healthcare can they deliver, given their personnel, financial and space constraints?

What is missing behind all this is the whole concept of community solidarity which underpins a progressive taxation system. Those who are wealthier are taxed at a higher rate and the proceeds should then be channelled to funding our schools and public hospitals.

In theory, wealthy employers too will benefit as they can be assured of a healthier, happier workforce. Decent wages and universal health coverage will reduce the number of people in dire straits and lead to more productivity and perhaps reduce crime as well.

Unfortunately if public coffers are squandered for wasteful mega projects of little benefit to the people or lost through massive corruption, then the public will lose confidence in the tax system and even feel resentful about paying taxes — simply because they don't see their tax money being put to good use.

If we have a clean government that is accountable to the people combined with a progressive taxation system that exempts the poor from even consumption taxes, then there will be a sense of caring and community. People will feel happier about paying taxes because they know they are helping the community, which includes themselves, their family members and their relatives who might be in need.

Francis spoke about this sense of solidarity on the feast of the Holy Trinity: “Our being created in the image and likeness of God —communion calls us to understand ourselves as beings-in-relation, and to live interpersonal relationships in solidarity and reciprocal love.”

In an economic system dominated by greed and selfishness, nowhere is such a sense of solidarity more needed than in caring for the sick and seeing that no one is denied proper healthcare because of a lack of means.

Total Comments:0

Name
Email
Comments