Take a Stand for the Rights of Physicians

http://www.capmag.com/article.asp?ID=4930

While Governor Schwarzenegger and California legislators are busy putting forward proposals to socialize health care, one element is profoundly missing: none of these politicians know or care what physicians think of the proposals. It should have occurred to them that physicians are, to say the least, rather central to maintaining good health care. But physicians and their views are obviously considered to be unimportant—an individual's need for healthcare entitles him to the knowledge, ability, careers and lives of physicians. Apparently, physicians are nothing more than a natural resource, like oil reserves—and are to be allocated by the government.

This treatment of physicians is not only a huge economic mistake but an unjust and immoral basis for health care policy. It is precisely because health care is so important that we should be very careful indeed to protect the rights of physicians.

The moral principle of individual rights must be defended in the face of anyone who needs health care and proclaims that he has a right to force someone else to provide it—to him or others. Politicians who tell you that you have a right to health care usually mean that no one should have access to any health care—unless they get it through the government.