Common Good With Reference To No Jab No Pay Policy

Question

Task: Essay on common good along with an analysis of No Jab No Pay policy

Answer

Introduction
The concept of common good originated from the articles written by Plato, Aristotle and Cicero. The existence of common good can be found in business, discussions on investment education, social responsibility, environment degradation, crime and poverty. It can be said that actions taken under common good does not reflect any good for the person doing rather it reflects the benefits which can be enjoyed by everybody.

No Jab No Pay is a legislation introduced by Australia in the year 2016. As per the legislation in case the parents do not immunize their children with less than 20 years will not be liable to receive any benefits under any of the child care schemes. The policy does not entertain any exemptions being asked by the parent’s basis religion or philosophy. The No Jab No Pay scheme was introduced in order to test the change of attitude of all the parents towards vaccination (Australian Government Department of health, n.d). The scheme of No Jab No Pay specially tests those parents who are dependent on these benefits in order to meet the both ends.

Existence of common good can be found in religious scriptures as well. Catholic religion considers common good as a collection of conditions adopted by social groups and its members bringing fulfillment for all. Common good has always been considered as a significant element of political or social philosophy. Application of common good is important in firms and businesses which work for the enhancement of interests for all the individuals. Common good also helps in taking decisions which are ethically correct and forms an important element in the ethical stakeholder theory (Manuel, Claire, Thomas and Michael, 2018). Companies should look into addressing the concerns of the community as a whole. The present assignment help paper will discuss about common good, stakeholder theory and what No Jab No Pay is. The principles of human flourishing has also been discussed and analyzed with reference to the policy.

How is No Jab No Pay related to common good?
The legislation, No Jab No Pay, introduced by the Australian government looks into serving all residents of its country. The government through this legislation is adhering to common good principles. The Australian government wants all its children to be immunized from serious diseases through its No Jab No Pay policy (Australian Government Department of health, n.d). There are some parents who do not get time to take their children to get different vaccinations at different ages or there are parents who do not consider vaccination an important aspect of a child’s safety, passing of this legislation (No Jab No Pay) has made them recognize the importance of vaccinations. There are parents who hesitate from vaccinations as they are influenced by certain individuals and groups in and around the society but through the application of the policy, the government has put a step to resolve the hesitancy of such parents. By passing the legislation the Australian government has tried to maintain equality among all people which is one of the attributes of common good. There are some other countries as well which practice mandatory vaccinations like Europe and United States. The mandating policy has helped in increasing the immunization rates in such countries (Trent, Zhang, Chughtai and MacIntyre, 2019). 

Common good and No Jab No Pay from different perspectives
Common good and the policy have been considered as related to each other. Different stakeholders have considered the pros and cons of the policy. Some of them support the policy and some are against the policy. Group which supports the policy relate the theory with common good and the group which are against it state that the policy is bringing an inequality in the society. The below content will help in understanding the different theories being advocated by stakeholders and groups.

Stakeholders: Common good has played an important role in the political and social studies conducted by Aristotle, Catholic teachings and Thomas Aquinas. Aristotle considers common good as a set of actions which is required to be taken by all the members of an organization. According to John Rwal, who advocates ethical studies said that common good is one of the condition to provide an equal opportunity or advantage to every member of the society (Manuel, Claire, Thomas and Michael, 2018). Immunization from some deadly diseases is an important aspect in fighting and preventing such diseases. There is long history behind the process of immunization. Children are vulnerable to different to different deadly diseases which makes their parents to immunize them from all such diseases. Receiving the required and correct immunization helps many children from dying every year.  Although there are reports and proofs from different scientists that immunization is a savior still misconceptions exists and certain people have created a myth with regards to the vaccination and its process. To save children from dying due to different diseases the government of Australia drafted a policy named as No Jab No Pay Policy under which compulsory immunization of a child less than 20 years has been advocated for parents in order to avail different child care benefits (Australian Government Department of health, n.d). But parents have a difference if opinion on this policy. Some parents believe that immunization will harm their children so they avoid vaccinations. They believe that there are more side effects of getting immunized through different vaccines as compared to the risks that the children are exposed to without getting vaccinated. It is found that some of the vaccines have mercury which is considered as a harmful making the parents skip immunization (Manuel, Claire, Thomas and Michael, 2018). There is another set of parents who believe that getting immunized from different diseases is against their religious beliefs and concepts. The objection is raised for those vaccinations which are created from the aborted fetus cells. There was a famous cartoonist named Michael Leunig who made a cartoon depicting his resentment against the No Jab No Pay Policy, though he was criticized for the painting. The cartoonist in his defense claimed that the cartoon depicted his stand against fascism and had nothing to do with No Jab No Pay Policy (Trent, Zhang, Chughtai and MacIntyre, 2019).

Government: As per the Australian government immunizing children is an important initiative to keep them safe and healthy (Australian Government Department of health, n.d). It is considered as an important invention for health and has been into practice since 200 hundred years. Taking different vaccines helps to maintain generations and save them from different diseases which can affect their health. By introducing the vaccination the government has tried to save all the communities who can be vulnerable to different risks from different diseases. The thought process to save its generations led the government of Australia, introduce the No Jab No Pay policy so that it can enhance the immunity level of all its citizens. The Australian government has laid a strict guideline with this policy which directly affects the benefits which was being availed by different parents under different child care benefits (Manuel, Claire, Thomas and Michael, 2018). Previously there were parents who skipped immunization claiming different religious exceptions but the introduction of the No Jab No Pay policy has rejected all such claims. There is a single ground in the No Jab No Pay policy basis which a parent can skip the immunization which is if the parent claims that the vaccination cannot be allowed basis some medical reasons (Trent, Zhang, Chughtai and MacIntyre, 2019).

Anti-Vaccination Group: These groups of people believe and advocate that parents should have the right to say which vaccination is necessary for their children and which can be avoided. The parents have a right to choose what is right and wrong for their children. The group claims that parents who are against vaccination are highly educated. The group is against the No Jab No Pay policy advocated by the government of Australia and they receive a support from all those parents who are against the policy. The group has been into existence since 20 years and a large number of Australian parents are associated with this group. But there is no concrete basis propagated by this group for rejection of the policy. It simply rejects the No Jab No Pay policy basis moral and ethical grounds (Trent, Zhang, Chughtai and MacIntyre, 2019). The social responsibility of the parents can also be questioned. As per their suggestion the Australian government can implement some other way in order to boost the immunization rather than forceful application through No Jab No Pay policy.

Group supporting the policy: These groups of people are against the anti-vaccination group. The group consists of parents whose children have fallen ill being exposed to different diseases due to lack of vaccinations. The parents in this group are active on different social media platforms in order to create awareness about the benefits of vaccinations. They help others to note down the threats under which their children can be exposed if they do not get vaccinated (Doherty, Buchy, Standaert, Giaquinto and Prado-Chors, 2016). Children who are not vaccinated are at higher risk especially the young ones.  The below data helps in analyzing the risk:

Source: (Trent, Zhang, Chughtai and MacIntyre, 2019)

The group believes that vaccination should not be a choice rather a social responsibility and when the social responsibility is realized then it leads to common good. The thought of the pro-vaccination groups helps in understanding and advocating common good along with providing a support to No Jab No Pay policy.

Principles behind human flourishing
Common good and the principles behind human flourishing are connected with each other. It in particular relates to the well-being of all the humans in a community. The principles behind human flourishing are associated with rights, duties, dignity and values. Social bonding and social relationships helps in human flourishing. Common good related to human flourishing recognizes that humans are social beings and for doing common good every person needs to contribute to achieve a common purpose (Doherty, Buchy, Standaert, Giaquinto and Prado-Chors, 2016). Humans need to share their responsibilities which are beneficial for the society as a whole. The human race needs to be encircled with a set specific duties, values and rights. There should be minimum standards in order to support the life of the humans in the society. There are other principles as well which can be associated with common good. Some of the themes of human flourishing principles can be related to Catholic Social Teaching. Different bishops and pops have documented about human flourishing through their teachings (Manuel, Claire, Thomas and Michael, 2018). Every human is dependent on one another and it is important to follow common good as advocated by some of the states practicing Catholic Social Teaching. But the application of common good is becoming complex day by day due to the involvement of duties and rights of each and every individual. All the people are required to follow their duties and avail their rights. All the social groups need to take a responsibility to provide the rights of the individuals who are seeking for it (Doherty, Buchy, Standaert, Giaquinto and Prado-Chors, 2016). Welfare for all should be the only objective for all the humans in order to meet the common good.

Principles of human flourishing encouraging common good
Human flourishing is characterized as an attempt to attain self- actualization and fulfillment within the framework of a larger group of individuals, each with the right to undertake such efforts on their own. This includes the individual's special, dignified, integrated, healthy, happy and holistic well-being within the broader family, society, and population.

There are three main principles behind human flourishing which help in encouraging common good which have been discussed below:

• Dignity of individuals: Belief is one of the inbuilt principles of the humans which form the base of Catholic Social Teaching. The moral sight of the society depends upon understanding the behavior of the human race and religious life of all the humans. The principle finds its grounds in the saying that all the people are mirror image of God. There is no reduction in dignity of any individual basis economic status, race, ethnicity, age or any such factors (Saul, Gilmour and Spokes, 2017). The concept of human dignity can be related to equality of all human being having equal value. People and groups who are against No Jab No Pay policy and vaccination needs to understand that government of Australia treats its citizens equally and considers all its citizens equal. Government implements any policy for the good of all that is for common good and not to enhance the interest of the policy makers.
• Poor having a preferential option: Through moral test and its analysis it can be checked how the society or the community treats its vulnerable members. Poor living in the society and the country needs an equal attention and dignity. They are to be provided a preference in terms of benefits which can be availed through different policies (Saul, Gilmour and Spokes, 2017). When a government makes a public policy it should ensure that the policy will provide certain benefits to the poor residing in the society. Poor having a preferential option must not be made a necessary aspect as it can showcase the favoritism being done for a particular set of people in the society. The poor are powerless and deficient which affects the society as a whole (Saul, Gilmour and Spokes, 2017). The poor needs to be uplifted through different efforts so that the common good can be achieved. To attain a healthy society, each and every member of the society should provide attention to those persons who are in need of special attention. Australian government through its No Jab No Pay policy has tried to uplift all the members of its society and to achieve common good. The policy provides benefits to the poor and to the people who are under privileged residing in the society. People who are protesting against the policy needs to understand that under privileged and poor should be provided more medical facilities and attention. Children of the poor and under privileged are exposed to different deadly diseases and they can only be cured when they receive adequate vaccinations (Saul, Gilmour and Spokes, 2017).
• Promoting peace: Different religious scriptures and teachings promote peace and states that it is one of the most important concepts in the life of the humans. Peace does not signify the inexistence of war rather it signifies mutual respect, confidence and love for one another within the society and the nation (Doherty, Buchy, Standaert, Giaquinto and Prado-Chors, 2016). Peace also helps in building trust within the society as well as among the people. Promoting peace helps in bonding with each other and agreeing to one another. Peace and justice is closely connected with each other. Peace can be maintained and promoted when there is perfect delivery of justice in the society. Peace is considered as the foundation of justice and it depends upon equal treatment of people. The policy of No Jab No Pay has been formulated in order to provide equal rights to all the people and this need to be understood by the people and the groups who are against it. The policy will help in maintaining peace which will lead to achieve the common good (Doherty, Buchy, Standaert, Giaquinto and Prado-Chors, 2016).

Conclusion
People of any nation are dependent upon each other making a one big unit and the unit is considered as one family. Equality and harmony is preached and advocated by all religions and all religious groups which help in achieving the common good. In order to achieve common good everybody needs to understand the principles that must be looked for in order to flourish human kind. Common good found its inception in the books written by Aristotle and Plato. As per Argandona, common good can be related to stakeholder’s theory. He also said that common good can also have its existence through ethics in the form of political and social ethics. It is necessary while taking an ethical decision related to politics and social, benefit of the stakeholders should be given a priority. All decisions needs to be taken for common good, to maintain peace and equality.

The present assignment help article has reviewed the policy, No Jab No Pay formulated by the Australian government. As per the policy, parents who have vaccinated their children from all the diseases can avail different benefits being provided under different child care schemes. The parents who do not immunize their children are restricted from such benefits. There are certain stakeholders who do not associate themselves with this policy and have a different view. People who are against the policy states that it is not necessary to take each and every vaccination and consider people who have not vaccinated their children as more educated than the ones who have vaccinated their children from all diseases.

People who favor vaccination are of the opinion that children who are not vaccinated are at higher risk especially the younger ones. In case a young vaccinated child comes in contact with another who has not been vaccinated then there is a possibility that he or she may be exposed and vulnerable to some diseases. Government advocates that for a healthy living, vaccinations play an important role in the children’s life.    So it can be clearly said that the No Jab No Pay policy formulated by the Australian government promotes common good and supports the principles of human flourishing which is to be applied for attainment of common good for all the stakeholders. Common goals need to be pursued jointly in order to establish common good.

Reference List
Australian Government Department of health. (n.d) No Jab, No Pay – New Immunisation Requirements for Family Assistance Payments. Retrieved from: https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/no-jab-no-pay-fsheet.pdf

Doherty, M., Buchy, P., Standaert, B., Giaquinto, P and Prado-Chors, D. (2016) Vaccine impact: benefits for human health. Vaccine, 34(52), pp. 6707-6714

Manuel, V., Claire, A., Thomas, S and Michael, J.M. (2018) The common good. Retrieved from: https://www.scu.edu/ethics/ethics-resources/ethical-decision-making/the-common-good/

Saul, N., Gilmour, R and Spokes, P. (2017) Annual vaccine-preventable disease report for New South Wales, Australia, 2014. West Paci Surv Res J: WPSAR, 8(2), pp. 5-11.

Trent, M.J., Zhang, E.J., Chughtai, A.A and MacIntyre, C.R. (2019) Prental opinions towards the ‘No jab no pay’ policy in Australia. Vaccine, 37(36), pp. 5250-5256.