The Obligation of Bikur Cholim

Q. Who is obligated to visit the sick?

A. The mitzvah of bikur cholim is incumbent upon everyone. Shulchan Aruch (YD 335:2) writes that even distinguished people are obligated to visit those of lower stature and attend to their needs, even if doing so is beneath their dignity. Although Chazal exempted people of distinction from performing certain mitzvos which might be demeaning (such as returning lost objects), bikur cholim has no such exemption.

Although, theoretically, the mitzvah of visiting the sick is incumbent on all people at all times, Rav Zylberstein (Chashukei Chemed – Bava Basra 116a) quotes his brother-in-law Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l that one is not obligated to constantly visit all the sick people, wherever they may be. Bikur cholim is a mitzvah only when the visit will be meaningful and beneficial for the person who is ill. In a similar vein, Tzitz Eliezer (vol. 5, Ramat Rachel 6) quotes Sefer Lashon Chachamim that one should not visit someone who will be uncomfortable, or it will be a burden for him or her to carry a conversation. He suggests that for this reason people do not constantly visit those who are ill. Often, people overstay their visit, and do not know when to leave. We must remember that bikur cholim is a mitzvah to help the choleh, and when a visit is overbearing or unpleasant for the choleh, it is no mitzvah at all.

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The Gerald & Karin Feldhamer OU Kosher Halacha Yomis is dedicated to the memory of Rav Yisroel Belsky, zt"l, who served as halachic consultant for OU Kosher for more than 28 years; many of the responses in Halacha Yomis are based on the rulings of Rabbi Belsky. Subscribe to the Halacha Yomis daily email here.