Freedom and health care

In their defense of AHCA Paul Ryan and his cohort of free market fans keep touting freedom. “FREEEEE-dom!”, a la Mel Gibson in Braveheart. We talk a lot about our freedom in America, but for all our loving of freedom, we seem to be not so much fans of rights. Freedom to choose a health plan (or not) whether it’s affordable (or not). But mention the idea that we each have a right to health? Whoa, whoa, whoa. The GOP doesn’t want us to get carried away and think we have a *right* to health or health care or health insurance.

Elsewhere, the idea that health is a right: health care is a human right is not controversial. To be fair, neither is climate change. It’s only America still “debating” climate change and evolution and the fossil record and whether or not people with the least should get to live lives in safety and health.

We as America don’t even believe you have a right to not get shot. Right? Public and court opinion are that police can shoot people. Unarmed suspect? Doesn’t matter. Running away? Doesn’t matter.

How do we reconcile this literal bowing to the police state with FREEEEE-dom?

WHO and our OECD peer nations all declare health care is a human right. It’s not up for debate. It is the premise on which their health systems are based. America? Nope, we’ve got freedom. Individual choice. (Except if you’re a woman who needs an abortion.) Paul Ryan and his teammates keep saying “freedom to choose the health insurance you want.” Which will be unaffordable, unless you really believe a person can spend 50% of their income on health insurance premiums, and also pay rent, buy food, oh and handle the out of pocket expenses if they actually *use* their health insurance. Where does that money come from?

So who exactly in this America gets freedom? And rights?