I'll be going over 3 different health care systems in 3 different countries; the Netherlands, Denmark and the United States of America. For each country I will give a brief explanation of the current health care system and then I will go over the advantages and disadvantages keeping the following moral philosophies in mind:
•Teleology – Stipulates that acts are morally right or acceptable if they produce some desired result, such as realization of self-interest or utility.
•Egoism – Defines right or acceptable actions as those that maximize a particular person's self-interest as defined by the individual.
•Utilitarianism – Defines right or acceptable actions as those that maximize total utility, or the greatest good for the greatest number of people.
•Deontology – Focuses on the preservation of individual rights and on the intentions associated with a particular behavior rather than on its consequences.
•Relativists – Evaluates ethicalness subjectively on the basis of individual and group experiences.
•Virtue ethics – Assumes that what is moral in a given situation is not only what conventional morality requires but also what the mature person with a “good” moral character would deem appropriate.
•Justice – Evaluates ethicalness on the basis of fairness: distributive, procedural, and interactional
[...] Although a firm believer of justice from another culture might say otherwise, a Danish inhabitant believing in justice will state that the current healthcare system is definitely in accord with justice United States Of America 1. Health care system Universal Health Care in the United States is currently non-existent. Health care is provided by different legal entities, which are largely owned and operated by the private sector. Unlike the Netherlands, health care facilities can reject a persons' application for healthcare on grounds of illness or high-risk. [...]
[...] The only argument that could be brought up is once again from an egoistic capitalistic point of view, the system keeps the insurer from a potential higher profit Utilitarianism The concept of utilitarianism is one that I personally associate with socialism, as socialism to me is mostly focused on equal opportunities and a desired result for the greatest amount of people. The Danish nurturing feministic government providing healthcare for all inhabitants is a utilitarian's wet dream Deontology It is in no way against the law that the government enforces universal health care in Denmark. [...]
[...] Relativist would argue that just because it's viewed upon as wrong by a significant part of the western culture, doesn't mean it's wrong and a relativist would fine a way, or compare it to a country where healthcare is very poor and barely accessible for anyone, to ‘proof' that this system is ethical Virtue ethics When looking at the United States' government as a person, there are several things you can say about her. She is seen unethical because she leaves part of her people to die, literally, because they cannot afford expensive healthcare. [...]
[...] Egoism Egoism seems inapplicable in a healthcare system that is not based on capitalism but rather on socialism. Yet insurers might argue that by means of this system they are deprived of the chance to compete and make more profit, which would be their best self-interest Utilitarianism The Netherlands has a life expectancy at birth of 80 years old as of 2006. Denmark has a life expectancy of 79 and the United States of America has a life expectancy of 78. [...]
[...] Maybe if I would have grown up in the United States of America I would be a strong supporter of the deontologists perspective and would value freedom of choice up to an extreme where I would be against universal healthcare. The ultimate question America has to ask themselves is; how much is a human life worth? I would say the ball is in Obama's court now. He is chosen to represent the people and it's up to him to reform the healthcare system. [...]
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