Health Care
The credibility of a healthcare system is not measured solely by efficiency, but above all by the attention and love given to the person, whose life is always sacred and inviolable.
The Catholic understanding of health care requires medical assistance be readily available for all, including and especially low-income populations. Health care should also encompass the whole person, addressing both physical and behavioral health needs. As Congress looks to rewrite the Affordable Care Act, legislative efforts to protect Medicaid funding for poor and elderly persons will remain critical in the state, as will ensuring that health care policies do not threaten life or restrict the right to conscience. In the area of health care, MCC supports:
- Protection of health coverage for low- and moderate- income individuals and families,
- Appropriate Medicaid funding to ensure adequate coverage for recipients and payments to providers,
- Opposition to legislation that threatens the mission of institutional and individual faith-based providers, and
- Policies that ensure adequate resources for behavioral and physical health care, including addictions.
News Releases
- Michigan Catholic Conference Urges ‘No’ Vote on Ballot Question to Legalize Recreational Marijuana (10/02/18)
- ‘A Blueprint for the Common Good’ (02/09/15)
- Senate Medicaid Vote Follows a Moral Path by Providing Greater Access to Health Care (08/28/13)
- Catholic Health Leaders Offer Guiding Principles for Medicaid Reform (05/14/13)
- SB 136 Strikes Balance Between Religious Liberty Rights, Health Care Needs (03/21/13)
Additional Resources
- The Word from Lansing Column:
- 2019–2020: A Blueprint for the Common Good (01/25/19)
- Proposal 1—Say No to Recreational Marijuana (10/26/18)
- The Issues, The Candidates, and Your Vote 2018 (09/28/18)
- State Budget Successes and the Importance of Engagement (07/20/18)
- Vaccinations and the Common Good (03/30/18)
- Proposal 1—Say No to Recreational Marijuana (Focus Essay, 10/2018)
- Vaccinations and the Common Good (Focus Essay, 3/2018)
- Confronting Michigan’s Opioid Crisis (Focus Essay, 6/2017)
- Transportation, Community, and the Common Good (Focus Essay, 7/2016)
- Healthy Michigan Plan Info
- Department of Community Health: MiChild Health Insurance for uninsured children of Michigan’s working families
- Health Care as a Basic Human Right (Focus Essay, 3/2010)
- A Framework for Comprehensive Health Care Reform (U.S. Bishops, 1993)
- MCC Guidelines for End of Life Decisions: Patient, Physician, and Family
MCC in the News
- Opponents Speak Out Against Mich. Pot Legalization Proposal (Detroit News, 10/24/18)
- Advocates for Existing Mental Health System Lobby to Prevent Pilot Programs (Crains Detroit Business, 04/18/17)
- New Campaign Highlights Catholic Services in Michigan (Catholic News Agency, 03/24/17)
- Preserve Flexibility in Health Plans (Detroit News, 12/01/13)
- Time Limits Remain Key Hurdle in Proposed Medicaid Expansion Plan from Michigan’s House Republicans (MLive, 05/14/13)
- $940 Billion Health Care Reform Nears Vote (Detroit News, 03/19/10)
- Michigan U.S. Senators See Pressure Mount on Health Care Legislation (Detroit News, 11/21/09)
- A Catholic Litmus Test for National Health Care Reform (Detroit Free Press, 10/16/09)
Advocacy
- Lansing Update:
- Letter to Senate Health Policy Committee on Opioid Package (9/2017)
- Position Paper: Medicaid Expansion (9/2013)
- MCC Video: Medicaid Expansion Legislation (7/2013)
- Statement of Guiding Principles for Medicaid Reform (MCC & Catholic Hospitals, 5/2013)