The right to health stands as a fundamental human right, globally recognized and enshrined in numerous international and regional instruments. Far transcending the mere absence of disease, it encompasses a holistic state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, demanding an environment where individuals can attain and maintain their highest possible standard of health. This intricate right obliges states to not only provide access to timely and appropriate healthcare services but also to address the underlying determinants of health, such as access to safe drinking water, adequate sanitation, nutritious food, decent housing, healthy working conditions, and environmental protection. It is a right of inclusive access, ensuring that health services, goods, and facilities are available, accessible, acceptable, and of good quality for everyone, without discrimination.
In the contemporary global landscape, marked by complex interdependencies, persistent inequalities, and emerging crises, the importance of the right to health has never been more pronounced. It serves as a foundational pillar for human dignity, social justice, and sustainable development, shaping policy agendas from local communities to international forums. The challenges of the 21st century—ranging from global pandemics and climate change to burgeoning non-communicable diseases and mental health crises—underscore the critical imperative of robust health systems underpinned by a rights-based approach. Upholding this right is not merely an ethical imperative but a strategic necessity for fostering resilient societies, promoting economic stability, and ensuring peace and security worldwide.
Importance of the Right to Health in the Present Context
The contemporary world faces an array of multifaceted challenges that profoundly underscore the indispensable nature of the right to health. Its significance extends beyond individual well-being, permeating every aspect of societal functioning and global stability.
Human Dignity and Well-being: At its core, the right to health is inextricably linked to human dignity. Without the ability to live a healthy life, individuals are severely constrained in their capacity to pursue education, engage in productive work, participate in civic life, and generally exercise their autonomy and potential. Chronic illness, preventable disease, or lack of access to essential medical care can strip individuals of their dignity, trapping them in cycles of suffering and deprivation. Upholding the right to health means affirming the inherent worth of every person, ensuring they have the opportunity to live a life free from avoidable suffering and premature death. This recognition is fundamental to fostering societies where individuals can truly flourish.
Economic Productivity and Development: A healthy population is the bedrock of a vibrant economy and sustainable development. Morbidity and mortality due to preventable diseases lead to significant losses in productivity, both through direct healthcare costs and indirect costs such as lost wages and reduced economic output. Countries with healthier populations tend to have higher economic growth rates, as a healthy workforce is more productive, innovative, and resilient. Conversely, a pervasive lack of health leads to a cycle of poverty and underdevelopment, as resources are diverted to treating illnesses that could have been prevented, and human capital is diminished. Investing in health, therefore, is not merely an expenditure but a crucial investment in a nation’s human capital and its long-term economic prosperity.
Social Justice and Equity: The right to health is a powerful instrument for promoting social justice and reducing health inequities. Disparities in health outcomes often mirror broader societal inequalities, with marginalized and vulnerable populations disproportionately bearing the burden of disease. The right to health demands that governments actively work to eliminate these disparities by ensuring equitable access to quality healthcare and addressing the social, economic, and environmental determinants of health. It calls for targeted interventions for groups such as women, children, the elderly, persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, and refugees, who often face systemic barriers to health services. By asserting health as a right, societies are compelled to challenge and dismantle discriminatory practices and allocate resources based on need, not privilege.
Global Health Security: The COVID-19 pandemic unequivocally demonstrated the interconnectedness of global health. A health crisis in one part of the world can rapidly become a global catastrophe, affecting economies, travel, and social stability everywhere. The right to health, in this context, becomes crucial for global health security, necessitating robust national health systems capable of surveillance, rapid response, and equitable distribution of vaccines, treatments, and diagnostics. It underscores the moral and practical imperative of international cooperation, ensuring that no country is left behind in the fight against infectious diseases. Upholding the right to health globally contributes to collective security by building resilience against future pandemics and health emergencies.
Realization of Other Human Rights: The ability to exercise almost any other Human Rights is predicated on a minimum standard of health. The right to education is compromised if a child is too ill to attend school. The right to work is unattainable if an adult is incapacitated by preventable illness. The right to participate in public life is diminished for those burdened by poor health. Similarly, poor health can impact the enjoyment of rights such as the right to food, housing, and a clean environment. Therefore, the right to health acts as an enabler for the full realization of a wide array of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights, creating a virtuous cycle where improvements in health pave the way for broader human flourishing.
Accountability and Governance: Framing health as a right rather than a charity or a privilege establishes clear legal obligations for states. It provides a framework for holding governments accountable for their health policies, budgets, and service delivery. Individuals and civil society organizations can use the right to health as a tool to advocate for better health outcomes, challenge discriminatory practices, and demand transparency in health governance. This legal and ethical grounding encourages governments to adopt rights-based approaches to health planning, allocate adequate resources, and establish effective monitoring mechanisms, thereby strengthening governance and promoting responsiveness to public needs.
Climate Change and Environmental Determinants: In an era of escalating climate change and environmental degradation, the right to health takes on renewed urgency. Air pollution, water contamination, extreme weather events, and changes in disease vectors directly impact human health. The right to health compels states to take proactive measures to mitigate climate change, protect environmental health, and ensure access to clean air and water. It highlights the interdependence between ecological well-being and human health, demanding integrated approaches that recognize the profound impact of environmental factors on the realization of this fundamental right.
Technological Advancements and Ethical Considerations: Rapid advancements in medical technology, from artificial intelligence in diagnostics to gene editing, present both immense opportunities and significant ethical challenges. The right to health provides a guiding framework for ensuring that these innovations are developed and deployed ethically, equitably, and for the benefit of all, rather than exacerbating existing health disparities. It necessitates policies that address issues of access, affordability, data privacy, and the potential for new forms of discrimination arising from technological progress.
Addressing Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and Mental Health: The global burden of disease has shifted significantly towards non-communicable diseases (e.g., cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes) and mental health conditions. These chronic conditions require long-term care, prevention strategies, and integrated health services. The right to health ensures that national health systems are designed to address this evolving epidemiological profile, promoting comprehensive strategies for prevention, early detection, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care for NCDs, and ensuring that mental health is prioritized as an integral component of overall health and well-being, free from stigma and discrimination.
Universal Health Coverage (UHC) as an Embodiment: The global movement towards Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is a practical manifestation of the commitment to the right to health. UHC aims to ensure that all people have access to the health services they need, when and where they need them, without financial hardship. It encapsulates the principles of equity, non-discrimination, and accessibility central to the right to health. By pursuing UHC, nations strive to dismantle financial barriers, strengthen primary healthcare, and build resilient systems that can progressively fulfill the right to health for their entire populations.
Five Factors Responsible for the Violation of the Right to Health of the Common People
Despite its fundamental importance, the right to health is routinely violated for millions around the globe. These violations stem from a complex interplay of systemic issues, political choices, and socio-economic realities.
1. Inadequate Public Funding and Resource Allocation: One of the most pervasive factors violating the right to health is the chronic underinvestment in public health systems. Many governments fail to allocate a sufficient proportion of their national budgets to health, prioritizing other sectors or facing severe fiscal constraints. This leads to dilapidated health infrastructure, a critical shortage of healthcare professionals (doctors, nurses, paramedics, public health workers), and a scarcity of essential medicines, vaccines, and medical equipment, particularly in rural and underserved areas. When public health services are weak or non-existent, the common people are forced to seek care from expensive private providers, leading to catastrophic out-of-pocket expenditures that push families into poverty. The reliance on user fees and co-payments disproportionately affects the poor and vulnerable, effectively denying them access to necessary medical interventions. Furthermore, inadequate funding cripples preventative health programs, disease surveillance, and health promotion activities, which are crucial for maintaining public health and preventing widespread illness. The lack of sufficient investment in health workforce training and retention programs exacerbates the problem, leading to brain drain and further weakening an already fragile system.
2. Socio-Economic Inequality and Poverty: Deep-seated socio-economic inequalities constitute a profound barrier to the realization of the right to health. Poverty directly correlates with poorer health outcomes due to limited access to the social determinants of health. Impoverished individuals and communities often lack access to nutritious food, living in food deserts or unable to afford healthy diets, leading to malnutrition and vulnerability to various diseases. They frequently reside in inadequate housing lacking proper sanitation facilities and access to clean and safe drinking water, contributing to the spread of infectious diseases. Lack of education further compounds these issues, limiting awareness about health practices, disease prevention, and access to health information. Moreover, poverty often means precarious employment or unemployment, leading to a lack of social protection, Health insurance, and the financial means to seek medical care when needed. The cumulative effect of these deprivations creates a vicious cycle where poverty leads to ill-health, which in turn perpetuates poverty, systematically violating the right to health for the most vulnerable segments of society.
3. Weak Governance, Corruption, and Lack of Accountability: Ineffective governance, pervasive Corruption, and a severe lack of accountability mechanisms significantly undermine the right to health. Poor policy-making, characterized by a lack of evidence-based planning or political will, can lead to the misdirection of resources and the implementation of ineffective health programs. Corruption, whether through the embezzlement of health funds, fraudulent procurement of substandard medicines or equipment, or the diversion of resources to private interests, siphons off critical funds meant for public health services. This directly impacts the quality and availability of care, often leading to a lack of essential supplies and functional facilities. A lack of transparency in health budgets and decision-making processes makes it difficult for citizens to monitor how resources are being used and to hold officials accountable. Furthermore, the absence of robust regulatory frameworks for healthcare providers, both public and private, can lead to widespread negligence, unethical practices, and a low standard of care. When governance structures are weak or compromised, the health system cannot function effectively, leading to systematic violations of the right to health for the common populace who rely on these systems.
4. Discrimination and Marginalization: Discrimination based on various grounds—including gender, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, disability, age, socioeconomic status, and geographic location—is a significant driver of health inequalities and a direct violation of the right to health. Marginalized groups often face systemic barriers to accessing health services, such as physical distance, cultural insensitivity from healthcare providers, language barriers, or outright denial of care. For instance, women and girls may face barriers to reproductive health services, indigenous populations may lack culturally appropriate care, persons with disabilities may encounter inaccessible facilities, and LGBTQ+ individuals may experience discrimination in healthcare settings. Stigma associated with certain health conditions, such as HIV/AIDS or mental illness, can lead to individuals avoiding necessary care or being ostracized. This discrimination not only limits access to services but also results in poorer quality of care, delayed diagnoses, and ultimately worse health outcomes for affected groups. The failure to ensure that health services are available, accessible, acceptable, and of good quality for all, without discrimination, represents a profound and persistent violation of the right to health.
5. Climate Change, Environmental Degradation, and Natural Disasters: The accelerating impacts of Climate Change, widespread environmental degradation, and the increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters pose growing threats to the realization of the right to health. Climate change directly affects health through rising temperatures (leading to heat strokes, cardiovascular stress), changes in disease vector distribution (e.g., expansion of malaria and dengue fever), increased food insecurity due to agricultural disruption, and worsening air quality from wildfires and industrial pollution (contributing to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases). Environmental degradation, such as water pollution and deforestation, deprives communities of safe drinking water and exacerbates health risks. Natural disasters like floods, droughts, hurricanes, and earthquakes destroy health infrastructure, disrupt supply chains for medicines, displace large populations, and create immediate public health emergencies (e.g., outbreaks of waterborne diseases, mental health trauma). Vulnerable populations, particularly those in low-income countries and coastal regions, are disproportionately affected by these environmental challenges. The failure of governments to adequately address these environmental threats, to invest in climate resilience, and to prepare for and respond effectively to disasters constitutes a significant violation of their duty to protect and fulfill the right to health for their citizens.
The right to health is not an abstract ideal but a practical imperative that underpins human dignity, social equity, and sustainable global progress. Its holistic scope, encompassing both healthcare provision and the fundamental determinants of health, positions it as a cornerstone for societal well-being and economic prosperity. The experiences of recent decades, particularly the profound global health crises, have unequivocally demonstrated that the health of individuals and nations is deeply interconnected, reinforcing the universal and indispensable nature of this fundamental right.
However, the consistent violation of the right to health for common people globally underscores persistent systemic failures and profound inequalities. Inadequate public funding, pervasive socio-economic disparities, weak governance structures riddled with corruption, deeply embedded discrimination, and the escalating impacts of environmental degradation and climate change collectively erect formidable barriers to its realization. Addressing these multifaceted challenges demands not only political will and substantial investment but also a fundamental reorientation towards rights-based approaches that prioritize the most vulnerable and marginalized populations. Realizing the right to health for all necessitates comprehensive, equitable, and resilient health systems, coupled with sustained efforts to tackle the underlying social, economic, and environmental injustices that continue to undermine human well-being across the globe.