One of the most important freedoms that did not get delineated but was widely recognized in the revolutionary Era, was the absolute right of self-possession. A free person owns their own body and is the ultimate authority on what to do with themselves and their own person.
This includes the right to take medicine. If a free person is ill, then it is up to them and them alone on consultation with their doctor, to decide how they want to treat their illness. We do not have the right, if we call ourselves a free society, to decide for a person what medicines are and are not allowed by law.
Patient Bill of Rights
There are certain human rights for patients of health care that ought to be recognized as inalienable.
Governments do not have the right to restrict patients from accessing different kinds or forms of healthcare as they choose. Healthcare regimens classified as ‘alternative’ or even ‘unusual’ should not be regulated into oblivion.
The ultimate expression of the right to self-ownership is the right to direct one’s own healthcare at will. If a patient prefers valerian root over valium, they should have access to valerian root without a government making its purchase and possession illegal.
The federal government is now working on making kratom illegal. Kratom is a natural plant substance that has an activity route similar to opioids. Kratom has been used not only to break addictions to opioid based pain medicines, but also to manage low level pain without the physical addiction cycle.
Humans are endowed by their Creator with Life, and it is each of our stewardship that we must maintain the life of our selves. Managing that life includes health care treatments and medicinal decisions.
No government should have the power to tell a free citizen “no” when it comes to their own personal health care or medical choices.
These rights should be enshrined in law to guide lawmakers for decades to come that our citizens are sovereign over themselves.
Right to Life
The first guarantee of our Declaration and our Constitution, is the right to life. To live. To not be slain. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This right is guaranteed above even liberty.
The right to live extends from the unborn to senior citizens. I will never support the funding of Planned Parenthood, and I will actively seek a way to prevent taxpayer funds from going to institutions that offer abortion as a form of birth control.
I will find ways to fight the growing trend (under the guise of ‘standard of care’ guidelines) to just help usher the elderly to a comfortable death, and use age to decide whether to ‘fix’ a disease or not. Doctors prescribe chemotherapy drugs for off-label use to prevent a disease that the drug is known to create – without informing their patients of what they are truly being prescribed, or that there are other alternatives for short and long-term treatment.
Patients have the right to informed consent, and have the right to know the full spectrum of their treatment options – including ingredients, side effects, risks and alternatives. Patients should be better informed that they have the right to participate in and/or have their interests represented in the development of their treatment plan – and they even have the right to a consumer advocate.
North Carolina Right to Try Act of 2019
The Federal Right to Try Act of 2018 is currently moving through Congress, and its passage will emphasize the need for North Carolina to enable the same right within our State. If it does not pass Congress, this will make a good noncompliance bill subject to a pursuance hearing.
The idea of a Right to Try act is: The State May Not Deny any terminal patient, or any patient with an otherwise ‘incurable disease’ from experimental or otherwise prohibited medication or medical regimens.
Ultimately, patients who are willing to try extreme measures will be allowed to take experimental treatments despite the lack of FDA Approval.
Healthcare Regulatory Reform Act of 2019
Deregulate Insurance requirements on health care policies. Allow customers to choose protections al-la-carte.
Deregulate healthcare payment portals and incentivize healthcare providers to provide al-la-carte medical services and surgeries.
Deregulate Health Savings Accounts and allow ROTH IRA’s to be used as an HSA. Prohibit HSA funds from being taken by the account managers. Every penny in an HSA should be yours forever.
Grandparents Rights
Grandparents are often denied custody and visitation in the State of North Carolina when their natural child dies, because North Carolina defines single parent homes as intact, and do not allow Grandparents to sue for visitation when their child dies. Changing the definition of “intact” to not include single parent families, and open up visitation and custody options in the interest of natural grandparents.
