Is there a human right to essential health care?

Abstract

In Global Health Impact, Nicole Hassoun joins the ranks of those defending a right to health. Unlike the World Health Organization, which views this right expansively, Hassoun would limit the right to the health needed to enjoy a minimally good life. This essay argues that this right is difficult to specify and insufficient to support the policies Hassoun defends. The essay sketches an alternative view of the obligations of institutions to address health problems that derives from imperfect individual duties to aid those who are doing badly or who are at risk of harm.

Keywords: health; health care; minimally good life; rights; rights to health.