Death by "dismemberment": How does God feel about healthcare?

Death by "dismemberment": How does God feel about healthcare?

It has proven to be a greater concern and painstaking issue for President Obama than the recession.
At this point, we’ve heard from every side on the issue: the Democrats, the Republicans, the moderates, the conservatives, and last Wednesday night, we heard from the President himself who attempted to slay the vicious rumors and conjecture of his harshest critics. Even church organizations have weighed in on the debate.
Yes, we’ve heard from every side – except one – the One. What is God’s opinion on the matter? Of course there is nothing in the Bible about healthcare and its reform. But there is something in God’s word about fairness and equality. That’s what the healthcare issue is truly about – fairness and equality.

We as Christians can not allow ourselves to be influenced by conjecture or uneducated guesses, but rather, by the Scriptures. That must be our focus as Christians – not rumors or speculations.

Before we go any further, read this excerpt from the latest report found on CNN.com –

“A freelance cameraman's appendix ruptured and by the time he was admitted to surgery, it was too late. A self-employed mother of two is found dead in bed from undiagnosed heart disease. A 26-year-old aspiring fashion designer collapsed in her bathroom after feeling unusually fatigued for days.
What all three of these people have in common is that they experienced symptoms, but didn't seek care because they were uninsured and they worried about the hospital expense, according to their families. All three died.
Research released this week in the American Journal of Public Health estimates that 45,000 deaths per year in the United States are associated with the lack of health insurance. If a person is uninsured, "it means you're at mortal risk," said one of the authors, Dr. David Himmelstein, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

The researchers examined government health surveys from more than 9,000 people aged 17 to 64, taken from 1986-1994, and then followed up through 2000. They determined that the uninsured have a 40 percent higher risk of death than those with private health insurance as a result of being unable to obtain necessary medical care. The researchers then extrapolated the results to census data from 2005 and calculated there were 44,789 deaths associated with lack of health insurance.

…The ranks of the uninsured have grown, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. It says the number of Americans without health insurance rose to 46.3 million last year, up from 45.7 million in 2007. The percentage of the uninsured remained at 15.4 percent. Young adults are more likely to be uninsured.” (http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/09/18/deaths.health.insurance/index.html)
The above photo source for Elisabeth Machol, Sue Riek, and Paul Hannum is CNN.com

Now you understand why I named this piece “Death by dismemberment”. Though it sounds morbid, that is the case – 45,000 Americans died because they were not members of a health insurance plan. With many American households reduced to one steady source of income, the number of uninsured Americans is sure to rise.

What would God have to say about 45,000 people dying for lack of health insurance? What would He say about the number of uninsured people in this great nation that we say God has so richly blessed?

Is it acceptable that insurance companies profit while unfortunate families suffer or that members of Congress are given some of the best healthcare benefits known to mankind while the very Americans that employed those senators and representatives reap little or no benefits at all? Is that fair, is it right?

See my full article at http://www.examiner.com/x-15850-Charlotte-Baptist-Examiner~y2009m9d20-Death-by-dismemberment-How-does-God-feel-about-Healthcare

Let me know what you think.