I am very pleased to announce the publication of a new World Medicines
Situation chapter. It is on Access to Medicines as Part of the Right to Health
and is written by Hans V. Hogerzeil formerly of the Department of Essential
Medicines and Pharmaceutical Policies, in WHO, Geneva, and Zafar Mirza from the
Department of Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property in WHO,
Geneva.
1. Human rights constitute an important principle of our
time. These fundamental human rights translate the values of equity, freedom,
fairness, social justice and non-discrimination into practical entitlements for
individuals, which increasingly guide public policies and national judicial
systems. Access to essential medicines as part of the right to health has been
further refined in recent years;
2. An increasing number of patients in developing countries,
especially in Central and South America, are claiming their health rights through
the courts. However, instead of leaving it to the judiciary to define people`s
rights, health policy-makers should ensure that human rights principles are
incorporated in medicine programmes from the outset;
3. The WHO World Health Assembly has agreed to use the legal
recognition of the right to health as an indicator of a government`s commitment
to improving access to essential medicines. Access to essential medicines has
also become one of five UN indicators to measure progress in the progressive
realization of the right to health;
4. At least one third of the world`s population has no
regular access to medicines. Inequity in access to essential medicines is part
of inequity in health care. Key evidence to document such inequities is rarely
collected. More than 30 countries have not yet ratified the International
Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and 60 countries do not
recognize the right to health in their national constitution;
5. The concept of essential medicines with its focus on
equity, solidarity and social justice is already very much in line with the
principles of human rights. Yet the daily practice of national essential
medicine policies and programmes can learn from the growing human rights
movement and its emphasis on transparency, accountability and freedom from
discrimination. This chapter sets out practical recommendations for
governments, United Nations (UN) organizations and non- government
organizations (NGOs) on ensuring access to essential medicines as part of the
right to health.
Keywords: Medicines Situation / Access to Essential
Medicines / WHO