Question

A guarantee of a right to healthcare hinges on the notion of justice and on the nature and extent of the “social contract” upon which a society agrees. First, contrast the libertarian and contractarian views of the social contract. Then, discuss what conclusions each of these perspectives reaches about the possibility of a right to healthcare.

Answer 1

Health care as a right leaves little room for democratic debate or compromise since the point of right is to remove an issue from realm of majority. Perhaps healthcare could be regarded as necessary to affect natural right to life or pursuit of happiness and consequently it should be treated as a natural right under the social contract even as renegotiated.

There lies a distinction between right to healthcare and right to life liberty and pursuit of happiness.

Existence of right to healthcare will enhance person's right to life and liberty, it doesn't follow that denial of healthcare will thereby result in denial of those rights as well.

Therefore the social contract will not deny any healthcare or right to healthy life. But at the same time social contract will not guarantee healthcare. Any further reform to healthcare must be based upon fair community consent, individual responsibility and reciprocity