Global right to health campaign launched
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《英国医生杂志》
The People's Health Movement, an international organisation of health activists, launched a new global campaign on the right to health at its second assembly in Cuenca, Ecuador, held from 18 to 23 July.
"The campaign in its first cycle will focus on the right to health care," said Abhay Shukla, co-convenor of the People's Health Movement in India. Dr Shukla works with a highly visible campaign for the right to health care in his own country that has documented hundreds of cases of denial of access, often resulting in serious health and financial consequences. The campaign has organised several local "people's health tribunals" and regional public hearings, with the support of the National Human Rights Commission of India.
"Access to health care is becoming a burning issue world-wide," Dr Shukla continued. "It is also directly amenable to actions from within the health sector, has a single group of target decision makers, and presents an important set of clear achievable outcomes."
These outcomes included strengthening universal and comprehensive healthcare systems in all countries and lobbying to change global patent and trade rules and conditions associated with the international financial institutions that presently undermine access, he said.
Assembly delegates from many countries attested to the campaign's importance. Increasing erosion in access to universal health care, growth of unregulated private providers, and declines in public funding are leaving millions of people without insured services. The Global Health Watch, an alternative world health report also launched at the assembly, cites evidence of surging medical poverty in many developing countries embracing market reforms, where lack of public health care is forcing families to exhaust what small savings they have on private treatments.(Ronald Labonte)
"The campaign in its first cycle will focus on the right to health care," said Abhay Shukla, co-convenor of the People's Health Movement in India. Dr Shukla works with a highly visible campaign for the right to health care in his own country that has documented hundreds of cases of denial of access, often resulting in serious health and financial consequences. The campaign has organised several local "people's health tribunals" and regional public hearings, with the support of the National Human Rights Commission of India.
"Access to health care is becoming a burning issue world-wide," Dr Shukla continued. "It is also directly amenable to actions from within the health sector, has a single group of target decision makers, and presents an important set of clear achievable outcomes."
These outcomes included strengthening universal and comprehensive healthcare systems in all countries and lobbying to change global patent and trade rules and conditions associated with the international financial institutions that presently undermine access, he said.
Assembly delegates from many countries attested to the campaign's importance. Increasing erosion in access to universal health care, growth of unregulated private providers, and declines in public funding are leaving millions of people without insured services. The Global Health Watch, an alternative world health report also launched at the assembly, cites evidence of surging medical poverty in many developing countries embracing market reforms, where lack of public health care is forcing families to exhaust what small savings they have on private treatments.(Ronald Labonte)