New in Global Regulation!
Seminar Attempts to Paint Businesses as the New Ambassadors for Human Rights. Click here to read more!
Global Leadership Group Assembled to Impose Human Rights Standards on Corporations. Click here to read more!
International Commission of Jurists Attempts to Hold Corporations Responsible for Human Rights Abuses. Click here to read more!
Resources
Click here to view resource material for this and other GGW pillars.
LOGIN
Click here to receive automatic email updates on the most recent developments of your favorite GGW topic.
The Right to Health: Human Rights Instruments and UN Special Procedures
The global governance of health care has as its inspiration a variety of international declarations, covenants, and programs.
Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights provides that everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food, clothing, housing, medical care and necessary social services.
Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recognizes the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. It calls for States to take steps to reduce infant mortality and for the healthy development of the child; to improve all aspects of environmental and industrial hygiene; to prevent, treat and control epidemic, endemic, occupational and other diseases; and to create conditions which would assure to all medical service and attention in the event of sickness.
The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the treaty committee responsible for interpreting the Covenant, has issued General Comment 14 on the Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health.
The United Nations Human Rights Council (f/k/a Commission on Human Rights) has assumed responsibility for a Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.
The Special Rapporteur gathers, requests, receives and exchanges right to health information from all relevant sources; discusses possible areas of cooperation with all relevant actors, including Governments, relevant United Nations bodies, specialized agencies and programs, in particular the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS, as well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and international financial institutions; reports on the status, throughout the world, of the right to health, including laws, policies, good practices and obstacles; and make recommendations on appropriate measures that promote and protect the right to health.
In the discharge of his mandate the Special Rapporteur undertakes country and other visits; transmits communications to States with regard to alleged violations of the right to health; and submits annual reports on the activities carried out under the mandate to the Council and General Assembly.
A JOINT PROGRAM OF
