America the Broken: Health Access

is a Human Right not a Class Privilege

Chad Hampton November 14, 2013 The Hot Topic Recent healthcare reform law, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA or ACA), went into effect October 1, 2013. It was a step up from our previous healthcare laws however, universal healthcare is still has a long journey until fruition. The current laws only mandate that citizens be required to buy healthcare insurance. Unfortunately there will be many individuals who ignore that law and face fines that will increase with each passing year. eHealth Insurance, an online insurance company, says fines will increase over the next few years ranging from a maximum of $285 per family in 2014 to $2,085 in 2016 (2013). Introducing a Universal Healthcare System to the United States would be a revolutionary change in our government. Social Stratification Stratification is the way things are arranged. Lavenda and Shultz, the authors of several anthropology textbooks, explain that social stratification is the arrangement of people within social groups that often have disproportionate access to valued resources (Lavenda, Shultz, 2013, Pg. 106). Many people in the US do not realize where they fall in the class system, most people think of themselves as Middle Class. Michael Pickett, an independent Progressive News journalist, explains the Middle Class is almost indistinguishable from the lower classes: working class, and the poor (referred to as the lower-class)(2013). There are several inequalities between classes in areas such as: education, nutrition, and healthcare. Alexandra Sifferlin, a journalist for Time Magazine, reports the working class employment is often physically demanding (i.e. carpenters, fishermen, etc.); these types of jobs tend to have a heavy correlation to heart disease as well as other physical ailments (i.e. torn tendons or ligaments, broken bones, overuse syndrome) because the constant stress on the body (2013).

The problem we face is our high-class citizens do not want to extend their vast wealth down to the working-class and poor individuals. The common argument is that the lower classes, especially the poor, are lazy and just want to live off the government. Fortunately, the majority of people do not have to live under these circumstances; however, this privileged lifestyle has lead to many political, social, and economic problems. Politicians from the Republican Party often pass legislation that is often classist; such as lowering the amounts of benefits that individuals can get while the cost of living is on the rise. This affects children in low-income areas by making it more difficult to stay in school or attend college. Children of lower class parents may have to work to help with bills so they may be force to drop out of school, or tuition for college is too expensive to further education and the government limits its aid making it impossible for some families. In the US an individuals education determines the type of job they are able to get in turn affecting their class; making it harder for lower class students to thrive in todays society perpetuates the class they were born into. Its not just school lower classes families have difficulties affording. Some families struggle putting a meal on the table, let alone a healthy one, and in some cases the food would not be available without government assistance. The Sad Reality The people who advocate against healthcare reform the most are the Top 1%, the elite group that holds roughly 40% of our nations money; 1% of U.S. Citizens have 40% of the wealth, and they still have the nerve to soak up more (Pickett, 2013).In a video interview, One-Percenter, President, and CEO of Humana Insurance, Bruce Broussard, says that the young people will pay more than they should to take care of the old(Knowledge@wharton, 2013). This simply means he will not be taking a pay cut to help protect the people his company insures. Tom Murphy, a writer from The Huffington Post, found that Broussard used $323,000 just commuting to and from work. Its

not only his commute that sucks up enough money to care for several families, but his income of $2.9 million dollars and bonuses averaging $1.3 million and other compensation that adds over additional half million dollars (2013). Of course, somehow Broussard has a hard time budgeting to get cheaper insurance for everyone. Importance Taking care of the working and lower class is important because they are the cornerstones of civilization. Implementing a Universal Healthcare system in the United States would change quality of life for the lower classes but ensuring they at least get the medical attention they need. Lower-class citizens not only have low income, they have to suffer the repercussion of their jobs by paying high medical bills; this is because their jobs are the least paid and most physically demanding. Lower-class individuals have statically higher percentages of medical problems such as: HIV/AIDS, diabetes, cancer, and heart disease; not to mention shorter life-spans than their higher class counterparts. Cost of healthcare will always be a problem for the poor unless we have Universal Healthcare. Its time the government invests in its citizens, to make sure individuals of all classes are taken care of regardless of social or financial standing. A Universal Healthcare system is not just for the poor. Universal means everyone: young, old, rich, poor, everyone would be covered by insurance the government; which would provide equal medical treatment to all of our citizens.

References eHealth Insurance. (2013, Jun. 26). Whats The Penalty For Not Having Health Insurance? Retrieved from: https://www.ehealthinsurance.com/affordable-care-act/faqs/how-muchare-the-tax-penalties-for-not-having-health-insurance-and-when-do-they-apply Knowledge@Warton. (2013, Mar. 27). Humanas CEO Were Concerned About What We Dont Know. Knowledge@Warton. Retrieved from: http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu /article/humanas-ceo-on-obamacare-were-concerned-about-what-we-dont-know/ Lavenda, R., Shultz, E. (2013). Chapter 7: Economic Anthropology. Core Concepts in Cultural Anthropology (5th Ed.) New York: McGraw-Hill Murphy, T. (2013, Mar. 4). Bruce Broussard, Humanas New CEO, Used $323,000 Of Company Money Commuting To Work. The Huffington Post. Retrieved from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/04/bruce-broussard-humanasceo_n_2807488.html Pickett, M. (2013, Mar. 14). Wealth Distribution in America. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0ehzfQ4hAQ Sifferlin, A. (2013, Apr. 19). Working Too Hard? Physically Demanding Jobs Tied to Higher Risk of Heart Disease. Time. Retrieved from: http://healthland.time.com/2013/04/19/ physically-demanding-jobs-are-linked-to-higher-risk-of-heart-disease/