The cause for the sickness and poor health that fill our world is not hard to find. These plagues are simply due to the fact that so many people are deprived of medical care. For a host of reasons, the practice of denying some people medical care is obviously unethical. Therefore, people should never be denied medical care, since every obstacle that stands in the way of people getting medical care or health insurance can be solved; lack of medical care harms the deprived individuals as well as society as a whole; and providing universal medical care would inevitably benefit individual people and society as a whole.

Although some obstacles seemingly stand in the way of providing some people with health insurance, it is not necessary to search far for a solution to these problems. For example, as reported by Chronicle Research, approximately 45 million people in the United States lack health insurance, mainly because they can’t afford it. While Medicaid is available for people with a low income, numerous people don’t quite meet the low income requirements to receive Medicaid. Meanwhile, in 2005, the government’s “2005 budget [allowed] more than $1 billion” – which could’ve been used for providing underprivileged children with health insurance – go unspent. (Lauriel) The obvious solution for this problem would be for the government to provide universal health insurance by insuring people who are rejected by private insurance companies. In this manner, people who are denied medical care due to the absence of health insurance will finally receive the health care they need. Another problem that arises regarding the issue of health insurance is that loads of people are denied health insurance solely on the basis of their own past medical history or their family history. For instance, in 2008, MSN reported that “a woman was denied medical insurance for taking a fertility drug to conceive her two sons.” (Simmons) Once again, the solution of universal insurance would resolve this hindrance to receiving medical care. After all, the United States is currently the only developed country lacking universal health insurance (Lauriel). Basically, where there is a will, there is a way, and that certainly applies to overcoming the issues that deprive people of health insurance.

Just as a variety of issues stand in the way of providing everyone with health insurance, there are also several problems that seemingly cause people around the world to be denied medical care but that can actually be resolved quite feasibly. For instance, there is a shortage of physicians and other health care workers in countless rural areas in Africa. According to one health advisor from the World Bank, “’To a great extent, the problem lies with a shortage of appropriate, well-performing health workers, particularly in remote and poorer parts of many countries.’” (“Health Workers Needed”) To overcome this shortage in Africa and other 3rd world regions, it would be ideal for the 1st world countries to join hands in an effort to send physicians, nurses, and the like to supplement the shortage in the poorer areas so that no Africans will have to endure deprivation from health care due to a lack of health care workers. Likewise, Harvey E. Bale, a former director general of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations in Geneva, Switzerland, wrote that “about a third of the world’s population lacks adequate access to quality health care, including medicines.” (Bale) To solve this problem, it is necessary for countries that have already established a decent health care system to not only maintain and perfect their own system but to also take the initiative in creating a worldwide organization committed to providing medicine and adequate health care to the deprived people mentioned by Bale. Obviously, then, the fact that many areas of the world lack adequate health care facilities and personnel is, by no means, an excuse to deny anyone medical care.

Not only are there solutions for all the problems that deprive people of health care, but also denying people medical care takes a heavy toll on the deprived people as well society as a whole. Without a doubt, when people are denied medical care, their health often deteriorates and they are sometimes unnecessarily hospitalized, which ultimately causes more death. According to the Institute of Medicine, “at least 18,000 Americans die prematurely each year” due to the absence of health coverage. (“The Problem”) Also, society suffers when its members are too ill to play their role in the community since they are denied health care. For example, Harmony Health Clinic reports that the result of divesting people of the health care they are entitled to as human beings results in “more disability, lower productivity, and an increased burden on the health care system” (“The Problem”). Without a doubt, the misery that results from denying people medical care cannot be overlooked, since it causes damage to the individual people as well as the entire society.

Since limiting medical care for some people is so harmful, providing universal medical care would improve the world and entail countless benefits. First of all, universal health care would be financially prudent for our country, since it would allow companies and businesses to give up the responsibility of ensuring medical care for all their employees. One company that could use a remedy for the problem of spending too much on employee health care is Starbucks, which, according to a statement by its chairman in 2005, “will spend more on health insurance for its employees this year than on raw materials needed to brew its coffee” (“Health Care Takes Its Toll”). Therefore, universal health care would lower such superfluous expenses without denying anyone medical care. At the same time, people currently “avoid physicals and other preventative measures because of the costs.” However, if people were assured that they would not be denied health insurance, they would be more receptive of preventative medicine. More preventative medicine would allow for the less expensive treatment of minor medical problems rather than the costly alternatives for prolonged illnesses that could have been avoided had the patients received preventative medical care. (Messerli) As a result, it is clear as day that the benefits of a universal health care system are worth going the extra mile to ensure that no one is denied medical care.

In short, there is a variety of reasons for never denying people medical care. A solution exists for every hindrance that seemingly limits access to health insurance and medical care. In the U.S., universal health care would be ideal, while solving the problem abroad calls for a worldwide effort in extending a helping hand to the poorer regions of the world. Furthermore, denying some people medical care drags individual people and society as a whole down, but providing universal health care in the U.S. would incur numerous benefits. Certainly, putting forth an effort to ensure that nobody is denied medical care will go a long way to relieve the curse of sickness that finds its way into all aspects of our world today. Hence, it is high time for societies and governments around the world to make and enforce plans for providing unconditional medical care.

Works Cited:
Bale, Harvey E. “Improving Access to Health Care for the Poor, Especially in Developing
Countries.” Global-Economic-Symposium.org. Global Economic Symposium, n.d. Web.
28 Oct. 2010.

“Health Care Takes Its Toll On Starbucks.” Msnbc.com. Associated Press, 14 Sept. 2005. Web.
30 Oct. 2010.

“Health Workers Needed: Poor Left Without Care in Africa’s Rural Areas.” Worldbank.org.
The World Bank Group, 26 Feb. 2008. Web. 28 Oct. 2010.

Lauriel. “Access Denied: Health Care for Everyone.” Associatedcontent.com. Associated
Content, Inc. Yahoo News Network, 11 Oct. 2005. Web. 25 Oct. 2010.

Messerli, Joe. “Should the Government Provide Free Universal Health Care for All Americans?”
Balancedpolitics.org. N.p., 04 May, 2010. Web. 30 Oct. 2010.

Simmons, Lisa S. “The Reasons Why People Are Denied Medical Insurance.” Ezinearticles.com.
N.p., 24 Apr. 2009. Web. 25 Oct. 2010.

“The Problem – Lack of Access to Healthcare.” Harmonyclinicar.org. Harmony Health Clinic,
n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2010.