Diana Lorena Figueroa

Mr. Kelly
Class 3A

Oct 6, 2015

Final Draft
A Moral Question
Many people die every year because of various diseases. In this modern time there are
a lot of treatments for different diseases than can save many lives. But what happens
when a person dies because they cant pay for a treatment? Health care is a human
right but its violated in several times because of the health system.
This is the story of Nikki White, a young woman who died from a serious disease, but
the main cause of her death wasnt her illness. She contracted systemic lupus
erythematosus, and she eventually die. She was a USA citizen and when she
contracted the disease she couldnt get health insurance. She had too much money to
qualify for health care under welfare, but too little money to pay for the drugs and
doctors she needed to stay alive, and she spent more time writing letters and filling out
forms, pleading for help than taking care of her health.
Ms. Whites death could be explained by two American values. Equality means that
people have equal rights; nobody is treated less favorably than others. In a positive way,
the value gives all persons the same chances to purchase things or jobs. However, in
this case, this value had been violated because she didnt have the same opportunity as
people who have too much money or people who dont. She is in that middle class that
sometimes doesnt have the same rights. Another American value is materialism. This
means an emphasis on the material object, comforts and considerations, with a

disinterest in or rejection of spiritual, intellectual or cultural values. Again, this value has
two sides. The positive side is you can get things you want to make your life more
comfortable. But, otherwise, this value makes material things more important than life,
and makes your lack of money more important than your need of treatment.
This case shows us the unequal health system because sometimes the middle class is
left helpless and without opportunity to access many benefits that people in a different
social class. If a person lives or dies, it should not depend on how much money the
person has, and if in some case the person finally gets some help or the requested
treatment, it usually happens after many legal procedures and a lot of lost time. I think
its not fair creating more worries for a sick person because these worries can aggravate
the persons health.
Like many others, this is a clear case where the right of health is violated; resulting in
the death of a person.