Demand Dignity: Health Care is a Human Right

This month, we ask our members to write letters to US senators asking for public health care.

If we recognize health care as a right and a public good, shared fairly by all, we can create a health care system that works for everyone. To do so, the Senate must show leadership now and provide a Medicare-like public health care plan that guarantees access for all and has comprehensive benefits, without using private companies as middlemen.

The Senate’s legislation is crucial in determining the fate of publicly funded health care for all. The Senate Finance Committee, chaired by Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), is currently finalizing its bill, which must then be marked up and voted on. That committee – and the Senate as a whole – faces huge pressure from the insurance industry and other forces committed to keeping health care a commodity, not a public good.

Once the Finance Committee finalizes its legislation, that bill will be reconciled with that of the Senate health committee, led by Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT). The full Senate, led by Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), will then revise and vote on final legislation.

Baucus, Dodd and Reid are key players who will decide whether the Senate’s legislation creates a Medicare-like public plan for all. This would be a key step towards treating health care as a public good and one day ensuring that the human right to health care becomes a reality for everyone in the United States. Write them today!

September 2009 action

Wny Health Care?

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states in Article 25:

Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

In Amnesty International’s Demand Dignity campaign launched in 2009 (see the article in our summer 2009 newsletter), Amnesty International is taking on the task of fighting violations of the economic, social and cultural rights of people living in poverty. One of those rights, as mentioned in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, is the right to medical care. To promote these rights, Amnesty International, along with other organisations, has adopted principles related to those rights:

We believe that health care is a right, not a privilege or a commodity. To fulfill the human right to health care, the U.S. health care system must meet these principles:

1. Universality: This means that everyone in the United States has the human right to health care. Reform measures should ensure that every person has access to comprehensive, quality health care. No one should be discriminated against on the basis of income, health status, gender, race, age, immigration status or other factors.
2. Equity: This means that benefits and contributions should be shared fairly to create a system that works for everyone. Health care is a public good, not a commodity. Gaps in the health care system should be eliminated so that all communities, rich and poor, have access to comprehensive, quality treatment and services. Publicly financed and administered health care should be expanded as the strongest vehicle for making health care accessible and accountable.
3. Accountability: This means that the U.S. government has a responsibility to ensure that care comes first. All players in the health care system, whether public or private, have human rights obligations, and must be accountable to the people. The U.S. government is ultimately responsible for ensuring that both public agencies and private companies make health care decisions based on health needs, not on profit margins or other factors.

Take Action

Write to key US Senators

Write to Senators Christopher Dodd, Max Baucus and Harry Reid, asking the Senate must stop pandering to the insurance industry and instead provide a Medicare-like public plan that is accessible to everyone.

Write to:

The Honorable Christopher Dodd
Constitution and Delaware Avenues, NE
RSOB- Russell Senate Office Building — Room 448
Washington, DC 20510-0702

The Honorable Max Baucus
Constitution Avenue and 2nd Street, NE
HSOB- Hart Senate Office Building — Room 511
Washington, DC 20510-2602

The Honorable Harry Reid
Constitution Avenue and 2nd Street, NE
HSOB- Hart Senate Office Building — Room 522
Washington, DC 20510-2803

Domestic postage: 44 cents

Sample letter, Senator Dodd: (html webpage) (.PDF Adobe Acrobat Reader format) (.RTF Rich Text format) (.DOC Microsoft Word document format) (.OTD OpenOffice document format)

Sample letter, Senator Baucus: (html webpage) (.PDF Adobe Acrobat Reader format) (.RTF Rich Text format) (.DOC Microsoft Word document format) (.OTD OpenOffice document format)

Sample letter, Senator Reid: (html webpage) (.PDF Adobe Acrobat Reader format) (.RTF Rich Text format) (.DOC Microsoft Word document format) (.OTD OpenOffice document format)