Crossroads Asks: Is Health Care a Right?

Sunday, Sept. 9 at 2 p.m. at Orcas Center

Dr. Thomas McCormick,lecturer emeritus at University of Washington, will initiate the 2012-13 Crossroads Lecture Series on Sunday, Sept. 9 at 2 p.m.

Orcas Crossroads Lecture Series will host Professor Thomas McCormick, who will present – Is Health Care a Right? – Sunday, September 9, 2012, 2:00 pm at the Orcas Center.

Dr. McCormick’s lecture will explore philosophical concepts of rights and duties and ethical principles that undergird our bid for a “just society.” Controversy surges today over the question of whether health care is a right or a privilege, and conflicts arise from an almost unlimited demand for health care services against limited resources to pay for such. How do “social determinants” of health enter this picture?

Dr. Thomas R. McCormick is Lecturer Emeritus at the University of Washington’s School of Medicine. He joined the faculty at the University of Washington’s School of Medicine in 1974 to develop the medical school’s first program in medical ethics. Since that time, he has taught a variety of elective courses in bioethics and was responsible for the early development of ethics in the medical school core curriculum. Currently he spends 40% of his time at the UW, and in winter quarter, serves as adjunct professor in bioethics at the School of Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale Branch, Glendale, Arizona.

Dr. McCormick received his Doctoral degree in Ethics from Southern Methodist University, Dallas Texas. Since then he has been a postdoctoral fellow at the Texas Medical Center, Houston, Texas, and the University of Tennessee Medical Center, Memphis, Tennessee.

Health care is a topic that touches all our lives. Please come with your questions and thoughts for the Q & A, and join us for the reception following the presentation. Tickets are $10 and available at Darvill’s Bookstore, online at www.orcascrossroads.org or at the door. Some complimentary tickets are available in advance at the Senior Center.

Our next lecture features Pulitzer Prize winner Hedrick Smith, who will present “The Dream at Risk” on Sunday, Sept. 22, 5:00 pm at Emmanuel Episcopal Parish Hall.

Orcas Crossroads Lecture Series is supported by our Crossroads Associates Circle, the Daniel and Margaret Carper Foundation, and Individual Contributors. Find more information at the Orcas Crossroads website: www.orcascrossroads.org