The right to life is not just a matter of life and death. It is a question of the right to enjoy life. To do so we must have our basic needs of food, drink, shelter, clothing, and even health care provided for.
The need for health care translates into the need for health insurance. Each year, the Diocese of Rochester has a public policy weekend to advocate for an issue of social justice through petitioning our government. The 2009 issue was "Access to Health Care."
As part of promoting this, the Catholic Charities Office of Chemung County held a session to speak about the need to provide insurance. I was one of the presenters. My presentation was the first of three. I discussed the Catholic understanding of the dignity of the person, rights, and how this leads to the Catholic call for health insurance for all.
Rather than trying to summarize all that here, here is the text and bibliography of my presentation. In the parish, I preached on how we are continue the healing ministry of Jesus and how, through this call, we are called to work for health insurance for all (Here is the text for the homily).
For Further Reading
- "Ethics of Medical Research" - Renewal of Faith explores some of the questions regarding ethical behavior in medical research.
- New York State Catholic Conference on healthcare
- The 1981 Pastoral Letter from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Health and Health Care
This page last updated on August 22, 2011
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