U.S. Healthcare: Policy and Poverty Seminar

CSC 33951 / THEO 33951

Immersion Dates: Saturday, March 10–Saturday, March 17, 2012

Students will leave on Friday, March 9 and return to South Bend on Sunday, March 18.

Cost: $290 and $75–$100 for DC expenses

Size: 12 students

Application Deadline: Thursday, January 19, 2012, 11:59 p.m.

Applications are now closed.

Placements will be published at https://www.nd.edu/~csc/application/documents/CSC_Seminars_SP12.pdf .

You will be notified by email when placements have been uploaded.

*Only those students who are in good academic standing with the University are eligible for participation. By submitting the application, you confirm that you are in good academic standing with the University.

Seminar Director: Cynthia Toms Smedley

Seminar Assistant: Mary Juckett

Seminar Learning Agreement

Spring 2012 Calendar

Course Overview

As American citizens have begun calling for changes to our deteriorating health care system, politicians have responded by designing a comprehensive package for health care reform. However, we have a responsibility to assess the current healthcare system, evaluate the proposed changes, and discuss their implications for all populations. Furthermore, the Catholic Social Tradition invites persons of good will to pursue a health care system that raises the dignity of each person and elevates the preferential option for the poor.

This seminar invites participants to examine the strengths and weaknesses of our health care system, explore the possibilities for the future of American health care, and ask how modifications might help create the society we hope to become and improve the common good. A survey of our current system will include an evaluation of: employer based healthcare, causes and consequences of being uninsured, public safety nets, under served populations, and the factors affecting the cost and reformation of healthcare.

Additional examination will be paid to the following fundamental questions both in the pre-immersion classes and during site visits to various healthcare organizations and government agencies in Washington, D.C.:

• Should healthcare be guaranteed? What services should be included?
• Is it a human right? Who should and/or deserves be covered?
• Whose priorities are most important (patient, physician, hospital, insurance company, research and development)?
• What are the most effective proposals for managing health care costs and needs?
• What role should the Catholic Church play in advocating for institutional and policy positions that place human dignity at the center of the discussion?

We hope you will join us as we learn about and discuss the future of American health care.