Subject Area
Political Science and Government, Public Policy, Social Sciences, General/Other, Sociology
Abstract
In a country in which the government does not recognize a right to health care,social safety nets are the last hope for persons without insurance or other means to pay for needed care. In United States, community health centers, hospital emergency rooms, and private charities comprise that safety net. Community health centers offer a practicable alternative for politicians and citizens who want to help improve the lives of persons who struggle to access health care. This dissertation reviews the political history of community health centers from their founding as part of the War on Poverty in the 1960s through Democratic and Republican administrations nationally and in Texas to date. Furthermore, it reports on survey research about two questions: one is whether the Texas electorate believes that health care is a human right, and the other is how the Texas electorate views community health centers to make health care more available to those in need.
Survey results revealed strong support that health care is a human right and that community health centers are important to the health care safety net and are worth expanding. The survey results also reveal important matters about voter demographics that could drive significant changes in future elections.
Degree Date
Fall 12-21-2024
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Department
Doctor of Liberal Studies
Advisor
Dr. Rick Halperin
Second Advisor
Dr. Rita Kirk
Third Advisor
Dr. Ashley Mag Gabbert
Number of Pages
212
Format
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
Recommended Citation
Elphingstone, Scott, "The Texas Electorate's Views of Health Care as a Human Right, Community Health Centers, and Certain Matters of the Health Care Safety Net" (2024). Graduate Liberal Studies Theses and Dissertations. 14.
https://scholar.smu.edu/simmons_gls_etds/14
Included in
American Politics Commons, Ethics and Political Philosophy Commons, Health Policy Commons, Medicine and Health Commons, Political History Commons, Politics and Social Change Commons, Public Policy Commons, Social Justice Commons, Social Welfare Commons, United States History Commons