Entitlement is a term used to describe a circumstance in which one has earned a right because of a way in which one has fulfilled a responsibility. For example, I am entitled to drive a car because I have earned a license, purchased a car, maintained it, and have shown a record of driving it safely. If I stop doing those things I will no longer be able to drive a car.
But the term entitlement has also come to mean a circumstance in which someone demands a right even though they have not fulfilled the necessary responsibilities. This phenomenon is common in teenagers but is, from my perspective, more and more common in the general populace.
One place we see this is in those persons who are happy to complain about the quality of government services but aren’t willing to pay the taxes to support those services. Some people are quick to complain about high taxes on gasoline and to complain about the poor quality of the roads on which they drive and fail to see the connection between those two. We have mostly agreed that there are certain services the government will provide as for the common defense of the nation. We all benefit from those services so we are all required to pay for them through our taxes.
Another agreement we have (as created by law) is that all are entitled to healthcare. If my youngest son and I are riding in the car together and suffer a major accident an observer will not be able to tell that I have health insurance and he does not based on the quality of care we each receive. We have collectively chosen to be sure that we do not live in a society in which those needing care are denied it because they are unable to pay.
The provision of universal healthcare is simplified in those nations with a single payer system. But problems like those in New Zealand have so alarmed Americans that healthcare debate in the last 20 years has almost excluded the single payer option. Instead we are keeping insurance companies in the system but tweaking the system so that everyone has to pay for the services they receive.
But the sense of entitlement in the nation is so strong that we are facing the high likelihood at this point that the Supreme Court will rule that the “individual mandate” is unconstitutional. The legislature cannot require that persons pay for services that it has mandated will be available to them unless it levies the cost as a tax, not as a fee paid to an insurance company.
If we are willing to deny health care to those who refuse to pay for it then we can keep the system from going bankrupt. But we collectively show signs that we will continue to care for the flightless birds in our midst. We will only have justice by maintaining a balance between rights and responsibilities. If we want a world in which everyone gets care we will have to figure out a way to pay for it.
