Right to Health Flashcards
(11 cards)
International human rights law recognises a right to health. What does the WHO Consitution 1946 state on this matter?
The enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being.
The right to health does not refer to what two aspects of health?
- A guarantee of a persons’s good health
- A right to be healthy
The right to health is not the same as the right to health care. How are they different? Name 5 aspects of the right to health.
The right to health care is a more specific concept relating to the provision of medical services, whereas the right to health is a much broader concept encompassing underlying determinants of health, including:
- Access to healthcare
- Safe drinking water and adequate sanitation
- Safe food
- Adequate nutrition and housing
- Healthy working and environmental conditions
- Health-related education and information
- Gender equality.
The right to health incorporates both freedoms and entitlements - what are they? Name the 2 freedoms, and 5 entitlements.
Freedoms
- The right to control one’s health (autonomy)
- The right to be free from non-consensual treatment and experimentation.
Entitlements
- Right to a system of health protection, which provides equality of opportunity to everyone to enjoy the highest attainable level of health.
- The right of prevention, treatment and control of diseases.
- Access to essential medicines.
- Maternal, child and reproductive health.
- Equal and timely access to basic health services.
- Provision of health-related education and information.
- Participation of the population in health-related decision marking at the national and community levels.
There are seven elements that characterise a right. Outline these elements.
1) Social or public goal
2) Focuses on the dignity of persons (with a more deontological point of view than teleological/utilitarian approach)
3) Equality and non-discrimination
4) Participation of the persons/groups affected in the matter/impacted by the right.
5) Imply entitlement.
6) Human rights are interdependent.
7) Rights are almost never absolute and may be limited.
International rights treaties create binding obligations on the States that have ratified them to protect and promote these rights. What are the 3 categories of state obligations?
1) To respect; requires the State to refrain from interfering directly or indirectly with the right to health.
2) To protect; prevent third parties from interfering with the right to health.
3) To fulfil, requires the State to adopt appropriate measures (legislative, budgetary, education programs etc) to realise the right to health.
If a State party ignores or breaches their Right to Health obligations, what can international human rights law do?
Very little. Most international court decisions only denounce the actions and reduce their international reputation.
Australia is the only liberal democracy and member of the OECD that does not have a constitutional guarantee of human rights. Does Australia meet its obligations to the Right to Health?
- Medicare and PBS assist
- Medicare provides access to all? But rural/disadvantaged have lower access
- Health care is only one part of the Right to Health - what about the other aspects?
Outline some arguments which support a domestic Right to Health legislation.
- Enables people to have a legal remedy should the government breach its obligations
- Protect people from discrimination and aim to reduce health inequities
- Forces government to prioritise the right to health
- Create a human rights culture
- Making the government more accountable and responsive
Outline some arguments which do not support a domestic Right to Health legislation.
- Increased litigation
- Undemocratic as judges could have more power of social/healthcare issues
- Insufficient resources to fulfill necessary “right to health”
- It would restrict rights, as to define a right is to limit it.
- Not necessary as rights are effectively protected in Australia.
Outline 5 issues with Indigenous Australians and their Right to Health
1) 26% live in remote or very remote areas, compared with 2% of the non-indigenous population.
2) Over 1996-2001, life expectancy was 17 less.
3) 48% of remote indigenous communities reported sewerage overflows/leaks
4) Underfunding by government in rural and remote areas.
5) Other determinants of health, such as adequate housing, nutrition and education are less well implemented and funded compared with the non-Indigenous population.
