People are shocked at the murder of the United Healthcare CEO and those who support the actions of the murderer. They rightfully denounce the murderer and those who support him. However, no one has identified the fundamental reason why many people think the murder is justified.
The problem is the belief that health care is a right. If health care is a right, then we’re morally obligated to provide health care to people. And if one is denied health care by an insurance company, this is an injustice and morally wrong.
The solution to this alleged injustice requires some kind of punishment. And given that people believe—however mistakenly—that this is such an important right, some obviously think that murder is appropriate.
But health care is not a right. A right, as shown so eloquently by Ayn Rand, is a moral principle defining and sanctioning a person’s freedom of action in a social context. Rights define and protect our freedom. Freedom refers to the absence of the initiation of physical force, the absence of compulsion and coercion.
If health care is a right, it means forcing doctors and nurses to provide the health care or taxpayers to pay for it. This violates the rights and freedom of these individuals.
Each of us has a right to his or her own life and no one has the right to force people to provide things that other people want or need. Rights and freedom are necessary because of the nature of human beings: we need freedom to use our basic tool of survival—our reason—to think and act to further our own lives and happiness. If we don’t have our freedom protected, we’re basically enslaved to those who are able to force us to provide what they want or need.
People are frustrated with health insurance companies. I can empathize because I have had claims denied by my own insurance company. But insurance companies are engaging in voluntary trade. They are respecting the rights of others. If one doesn’t like the actions an insurance company takes, one is free to argue with the company to get it to approve the claim, advocate for changes to its policies, sue the company if it isn’t following its policies, or do business with another company.
What we need to have better and less expensive health care is for rights to be protected more in this industry. It’s violations of rights that have led to the current situation. For example, it was maximum wage controls during World War II that led to the rise of employer provided health care. Employers began providing other benefits since they couldn’t pay wages above the government imposed maximum wage. Medicare, Medicaid, and Obamacare violate rights as well. These and other violations of rights have led to an insatiable demand for health care and made it harder to provide health care, all the while leading to rapidly rising prices.
If these violations of rights were abolished, the profit motive would provide the strongest possible motivation and ability to provide more and better health care. The cosmetic surgery industry provides a great example of what could be achieved. In this industry, which has far less government interference, quality has improved and prices have fallen in real terms to the point where people can afford such procedures on a much wider scale.
Instead, people call for greater violations of rights in health care. But government provided health care, such as in Canada and Britain, is of lower quality and one faces far longer wait times to obtain it. Health care in these countries would be even worse if they didn’t benefit from innovations in the freest health care market: the U.S.
What about health care under outright socialism? If you think it’s better, please go to Cuba or North Korea to experience that type of health care.
How would the poor obtain health care under a free market? They would do so through voluntary charity. If one wants to help the poor, one has every right to do so. However, no one has the right to force others to help the poor obtain health care.
The solution to the problems in health care isn’t violating rights to a greater degree through socializing medicine or acts of violence. The solution is greater protection of individual rights and freedom. This, ultimately, is the only way to create a more peaceful and prosperous society for everyone.
Brian P. Simpson is an economics professor at National University in San Diego.