Interpreting the International Right to Health in a Human Rights-Based Approach to Health

Area of Science:

• Public International Law
• International Human Rights Law
• Global Health Policy

Background:

• The scholarly literature and United Nations (UN) discourse show a shift from the right to health towards human rights-based approaches to health since 1993-1994.
• Human rights guidance adopted by UN agencies addresses specific health issues, indicating a move towards broader frameworks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the evolving role of the international right to health and human rights-based approaches in academic and UN contexts.
• To examine the potential risk of diminishing the right to health within human rights-based approaches.
• To advocate for the explicit centrality and robust interpretation of the right to health in international law.

Main Methods:

• Content analysis of scholarly literature and UN documents.
• Examination of UN human rights guidance related to health.
• Legal interpretation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights within the framework of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.

Main Results:

• A discernible shift occurred from focusing on the right to health to emphasizing human rights-based approaches to health.
• Human rights-based approaches, while valuable, may inadvertently downplay the distinct significance of the right to health.
• Current interpretations by UN bodies risk diminishing the unique attributes of the right to health.

Conclusions:

• The right to health possesses unique qualities essential for effective rights-based health strategies.
• A human rights-based approach to health should explicitly center the right to health to avoid dilution.
• Distinctive interpretative methods, consistent with public international law and human rights law, should be employed to uphold the right to health.