What One Follower of Christ Thinks About Universal Health Care

By Marty Duren, CP Op-Ed Contributor Friday, January 31, 2014

The current American version of Universal Healthcare (UHC), Obamacare, has been the subject of not a little debate. One side seems to think it is a literal panacea. The other places it somewhere between overt communism or the total collapse of the U.S. economy and Satan worship accompanied by child sacrifices.

I have not devoted much time either to thinking or writing about Obamacare. It is a law in the process of implementation. Presidential candidates who ran promising to repeal it were defeated. We now deal with the consequences, good, bad or neutral.

Leaving aside from Obamacare for the moment, I am striving to discern why Universal Healthcare seems distasteful to so many. Is it wrong to want people to be healthy and physically whole as much as possible?

I am struggling to see the "danger of socialized medicine" argument as legitimate. Between Medicaid and all its parts, Medicare, CHIP, etc, already have an enormous amount of socialized or partially socialized medicine in this country. (This is a fascinating look at Universal Healthcare efforts in American history.)

Are there followers of Christ who are arguing that universal healthcare is unbiblical? If so, who has made such an argument?

If not, where are those who have all along been pushing for Universal Healthcare pre-Obama, pre-Hilary and pre-Romney? I suspect there are some; perhaps they are on the "wrong" side of the political spectrum. If providing healthcare for every citizen is a good and honorable goal why have Christ followers not been looking for ways to make it happen? This assumes Obamacare is the abomination some make it out to be and should be rejected.

The history of Christianity is the building of hospitals, clinics, and other caregiving centers. Are we choosing to distance ourselves from this heritage? (Before you say the government should leave care of the sick and ailing to churches, consider whether churches have the financial resources to carry such a burden for the entire country. Short of selling all property and buildings, I do not see it is feasible.)

I am not so much concerned with whether Obamacare is the best manifestation of Universal Healthcare, or whether the website works, or whether it is affordable. Is the idea of Universal Healthcare unbiblical?

Marty Duren is a former pastor, Christ follower, husband, father, writer, social media strategist and general provocateur who lives in Hermitage, TN. His blog, Kingdom in the Midst can be found at www.martyduren.com.