Ed Keener, board president of the Interfaith Alliance and board president of Interfaith Sanctuary Homeless Services, has written an article in support of Health Care for America Now in the Idaho Statesman. Here's an excerpt:

Quality, affordable health care for all, especially vulnerable ones, should be a pledge Christians, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, spiritualists and believers in a higher power can embrace, endorse and work for. We who are campaigning for affordable health care for all ask, "Which side are you on, people of faith and goodwill? Which side are you on, large and small businesses in the Treasure Valley? Which side are you on, everyday working folk? Which side are you on, health care professionals? Which side are you on, health insurance industry? Which side are you on, state and local legislators, Mr. Governor, and community movers and shakers?"

I couldn't agree more.(*)Health care is at its core a moral issue. (*)

When our founding fathers drafted the Declaration of Independence, they laid out the moral foundation of our nation. Their wording, codifying an inalienable right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" was deliberate. Life was placed first, above the other immovable rights, as life is the most basic right we have. Without access to quality, affordable health care, the right to life becomes meaningless.

Health care is a moral issue, and health care is a right. It was codified by our founding fathers at the birth of our nation. The right to life doesn't depend on how much you can pay, whether your job provides decent benefits, or whether you have pre-existing conditions. The right to life is inalienable. It is available to all. It is at the center of our nation's moral code, and as Ed Keener points out, the center of religious faith as well.

Health care is a fundamental right, and a fundamental value.(*)

(also posted at the NOW! blog)




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