ABSTRACT
Health is fundamental to well-being and thus a human right. The tragedy of deaths due to preventable causes and the specter of global epidemics underscore the importance of human health and access to health care. Although human rights related to health have been typically viewed as part of economic, social, and cultural rights, they are indivisible and interconnected with all other rights. The 2005 World Health Organization (WHO) Commission on the Social Determinants of Health linked health to human rights by identifying the structural patterns of hierarchal privilege, power, and access to resources as associated with health disparities and inequalities of care. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) identifies the right to freedoms necessary for health. Social work practice that advances the right to health should work towards sustainable, health-promoting environments, equal access to health resources, and an adequate minimum standard of living.
