Affordable Care Act is Helping the Poor and Hurting the Less Poor

Is the Affordable Care Act really helping those in poverty, or is it promoting laziness in America? The Affordable Care Act is not Constitutional as it exceeds the President’s powers and the role of the federal government, it is philosophically unjust as it uses one group’s money for another group’s benefit, and biblically it is just in some ways, as it is giving to the poor and helping the impoverished afford healthcare for themselves and their families, but also is considered theft, because they are taking money from one to give to another, even if it is for a good purpose. Doing the wrong thing for the right reason is still the wrong thing. Caring for sick people is a good thing to do, however, it is not the role of the government to do so. This exceeds the president's power and the role of the government, the bigger the executive branch is, the closer you are to a dictatorship. Helping the poor is a state problem because the issue differs from state to state. Each state is different in their own ways and one overarching law doesn’t fit the needs of every state. Philosophically it is unjust because it encourages laziness in the American people. There is a middle ground in Obamacare where people don’t qualify for Obamacare because of their salary, but also don’t make enough to afford their own insurance. Because of this, it encourages Americans to drop down and become lazier so that they qualify for Obamacare and aren’t stuck in that middle ground. Biblically, it is a good thing to help the poor and to care for those in need, but caring for the sick is not the role of the government, it is up to the church or the state to help and deal with these problems.

Biblically, taking care of the sick is a good thing to do. In fact, God shows his compassion for the needy and sick in the 1 Samuel 2:8 saying “He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the garbage pile.” God loves those who are in need and will do everything he can to help them, and he wants us to do the same. Also, we are commanded in Matthew 10:8-9 “ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” It shows a God wants us and commands us to watch out for those in need and to help them, just as Christ has helped us in our lives. However, at what point does this line get crossed of helping and caring for others? Caring for the sick is a good thing, but it definitely not the role of the government to step in and take care of it. The government is supposed to make sure we stay safe, protect our borders from foreign threats, execute justice, etc. That’s the role of the government, nothing more and nothing less. They can encourage churches to step up and help the poor and sick, they can encourage companies to take care of the needy, but the government is not at all tasked with stepping in on this and taking responsibility and action to make sure those in need are helped. The Affordable Care Act increases the national debt of America to the point where it is one-sixth of our national economy. As a nation, America is spending way more money than they own and because of this, they are in debt to other countries. In Romans 13:8 it says “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.' God commands us to not be in debt, but because of the Affordable Care Act, we are putting our country in greater debt than they are in already. (Barnett, n.d.).

Constitutionally, making the Affordable Care Act is not in the president's role, as it exceeds the power of the president and the role of the federal government because they are forcing high taxes to help the lower class have insurance at other people’s costs. Obamacare is an unconstitutional violation of the commerce clause. The tenth amendment in the United States Constitution states that “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” Nowhere in the constitution does it say that the government can use one group's money for another group’s benefit and that is exactly what Obamacare is doing when it comes to providing healthcare for those who can’t afford it. He is making healthcare more expensive to those who don’t qualify for Obamacare and making them pay higher taxes to make it easier for the impoverished to afford healthcare. The tenth amendment states that if it doesn’t specifically state in the constitution that it is up to the federal government, then it is up to the state, therefore making it a state problem and not something that the federal government and the president can intervene on. The people of the states created the federal government through the U.S. Constitution. “The federal government is a creation and an agent of the people. When the federal government exceeds its authority, then the people of the states have the right to nullify unconstitutional laws, especially when they are unworkable and detrimental to the citizens.”(Loftman, 2013). Basically stating that when the government exceeds their powers, just as they did with the Affordable Care Act, the American people have the right to get rid of the law because of its unconstitutionality if it is causing detriment to the economy. Forcing taxes on those who can afford healthcare not only makes healthcare more expensive for those that Obamacare doesn’t help, but it also is unconstitutional in how it violates the commerce clause and our constitutional rights shall not be infringed upon.

Do you consider healthcare a basic human right, or is it a privilege to only those who can afford it? Philosophically it is unjust because giving basically free healthcare to those who can’t afford it encourages laziness and no motivation to work hard and get a job. There is also a middle ground on this, where some people who don’t qualify for Obamacare also do not have the money to afford healthcare on their own because of the high tax rates being forced onto them because of Obamacare in the first place. Obamacare has the right intentions and morally it is a good thing but it is at the cost of other people’s expenses which is crossing a line. The Affordable Care Act says they allow choice but in reality, they fine people if they don’t make the choice they want them too. (The fine for not buying healthcare is going to keep going up until the cost of the fine is more than the cost of healthcare itself). Obamacare forces the people to comply with them and does not give them the freedom of choice and last time I checked, that is a constitutional right. This is philosophically unjust in many ways, such as the promotion of laziness in America, it makes it more expensive for those who don’t qualify for Obamacare, leaving a huge gap in the middle for those who can’t afford healthcare and don’t qualify for Obamacare. Obamacare is potentially a good thing but it is not up to the government to decide, it is a state problem because one policy does not fit all states because different states have different needs to be met. (Barnett,n.d.)

In conclusion, The Affordable Care Act is not Constitutional as it exceeds the President’s powers and the role of the federal government, it is philosophically unjust as it uses one group’s money for another group’s benefit, and biblically it is just in some ways, as it is giving to the poor and helping the impoverished afford healthcare for themselves and their families, but also is considered theft, because they are taking money from one to give to another, even if it is for a good purpose. Do you consider Obamacare to exceed the power of the president, or do you think the government constitutionally has the power to force such a law? Obama has the right intentions in making this policy to help the poor and needy but this exceeds his power as president and should not be his decision to make. There are so many benefits to Obamacare for the poor but the effects it has on the other people outweigh the government trying to stop him and help the impoverished.