General Welfare Research Paper

1043 Words3 Pages

The preamble of the US constitution states that “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union ...promote the general Welfare...” How does the government interpret “promote the general Welfare” does that mean the insurance of equal opportunity or does that mean an insurance of things such as food, shelter and healthcare. It must also be evaluated as to whether the US has the ability to insure such things in its current and impending economic state. In the US today, where some US citizens do not enjoy many of the niceties which other US citizens do, such as food, shelter and health care, do they have the inalienable human right to those niceties and does the government have the right to take from the rich in order …show more content…

This meant the insurance of opportunities such as the right to work and the right to goods and services. This guarantee is not the guarantee to be handed these goods and services, but the right to purchase these goods and services. For this reason there is no guarantee to shelter, food and health care; but there is a guarantee to purchase shelter, food and health care regardless of predetermined uncontrollable features such as race or gender. Furthermore, the Constitution establishes a set of rules and rights, such as the 4th amendment which protects us from the unreasonable search and seizure. If you apply the idea of the constitution as a set of rules and rights then how can health care be justified as a right? It is best explained by John Mackey, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Whole Foods Market, wrote in his Aug. 11, 2009 Wall Street Journal …show more content…

Currently under the Affordable Healthcare Act, if an individual does not have health care they are required to pay a fee in the form of a tax. This is the initial economic issue with mandate universal health care. Furthermore it can be seen by hospital and clinic costs, since hospitals and clinics cannot refuse those based on their ability to pay it has driven up the cost for those who can pay to a level to which almost no one can afford. Although this is only health care, this is mimics how it would work for food and health care. It would drive up the price of food and housing if it were mandated to be provided to all. Furthermore, this would drive us into an economic slump because “Patients would demand far more medical care because additional consumption would cost them little. Higher tax rates would discourage work and productivity, yielding less economic growth and wealth...” (Cannon). To continue Cannon’s point Mike Rosen, former CFE at Samsonite and Beatrice Foods, wrote in his Aug. 13, 2009 Denver Post

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