Krista Oehlke | Harvard Law School (original) (raw)
Papers by Krista Oehlke
Access to Medicines 10.3 therapy 5 , 6), and the prevailing R&D model has us ill-prepared to resp... more Access to Medicines 10.3 therapy 5 , 6), and the prevailing R&D model has us ill-prepared to respond to emerging infectious diseases such as Zika and Ebola; to neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) that predominantly affect populations with little purchasing power; 7 and to neglected populations, such as people living with rare diseases and children. The human rights-based approach put forth by this chapter will provide recommendations to resolve this incoherence between innovation and access by realigning global public health priorities and global health technology innovation. This chapter intends to develop the current understanding of a human rights-based approach to access to medicines: it outlines the challenges that many populations face in accessing medicines (Section 1, part I), explains what understanding access to medicines through a human-rights based lens means (part II), summarizes human rights elements necessary for the realization of access to medicines (part III), and examines the tension between intellectual property (IP) rights and international human rights commitments (part IV). Part V focuses on key populations that encounter specific challenges within the broad landscape of enabling access to medicines, and Part VI recommends rights-based interventions and practices. After a tabular overview of the most relevant international and regional human rights standards related to the topic (Section 2), Section 3 discusses relevant human rights-based approaches to advocacy, litigation, and programming. Section 4 highlights specific country examples that have been successful in advancing the right to health and access to medicines for all, and the final section offers a glossary for further reading. What are the issues and how are they human rights issues? I. An overview of the international human rights framework Access to essential medicines, nested in the right to the highest attainable standard of health, is well founded in international law. The 1946 Constitution of the World Health Organization and the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) both expressly recognize the right to health. The 1966 International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), which has 164 states parties, elaborates that the right to health includes "access to health facilities, goods, and services." In General Comment 14 (2000) on the right to health, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) interprets the normative content of article 12 of the ICESCR. 8 Although the ICESCR only requires the progressive realization of the right to health in the context of limited resources, there is a core set of minimum obligations which are not subject to progressive realization, including access to essential medicines. 9 The WHO, numerous national court cases and resolutions of the Human Rights Council, and the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health reaffirm access to essential medicines as a human right that must be available "for all." While states hold the core responsibility for essential medicines provision, these responsibilities are shared with other non-state actors. For example, pharmaceutical companies have human rights responsibilities described by the former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, including the duty to take all 5 United Nations (UN), "Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages," SDGs fact sheet, http://www.un.org/ sustainabledevelopment/health/. 6 While access to treatment for HIV/AIDS is still a challenge for many, "new HIV infections in 2013 were estimated at 2.1 million, which was 38 per cent lower than in 2001." United Nations (UN), "Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages," SDGs fact sheet, http://www.un.org/ sustainabledevelopment/health/. 7 In 2014 alone NTDs affected an estimated 1.7 billion people. However, insufficient R&D is invested in treating and preventing NTDs, "further amplified by the fact that many [of these diseases] require chronic and costly care.
This chapter will introduce you to key issues and resources in access to medicines and human righ... more This chapter will introduce you to key issues and resources in access to medicines and human rights. In addition, this chapter will help you understand why, more now than ever, access to medicines must be understood and approached as a human rights issue. Some of these issues are also addressed in Chapter 1 on Patient Care, Chapter 2 on HIV/AIDS, Chapter 3 on Tuberculosis and Human Rights, and Chapter 5 on Palliative Care and Human Rights. The chapter is organized into ve sections that answer the following questions: 1. How is access to medicines a human rights issue? 2. What is a human rights-based approach to advocacy, litigation, and programming? 3. What are some examples of effective human rights-based work in the area of access to medicines? 4. Where can I nd additional resources on human rights-based approach to access to medicines? 5. What are key terms related to a human rights-based approach to access to medicines?
Realizing Roma Rights, 2017
Health and Human Rights: An …, 2011
Based on an introductory course at the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health ... more Based on an introductory course at the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions, this multi-contributor textbook covers public health history, development, and organization (chapters 12), analytic tools and methods (chapters 310), behavior ...
Access to Medicines 10.3 therapy 5 , 6), and the prevailing R&D model has us ill-prepared to resp... more Access to Medicines 10.3 therapy 5 , 6), and the prevailing R&D model has us ill-prepared to respond to emerging infectious diseases such as Zika and Ebola; to neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) that predominantly affect populations with little purchasing power; 7 and to neglected populations, such as people living with rare diseases and children. The human rights-based approach put forth by this chapter will provide recommendations to resolve this incoherence between innovation and access by realigning global public health priorities and global health technology innovation. This chapter intends to develop the current understanding of a human rights-based approach to access to medicines: it outlines the challenges that many populations face in accessing medicines (Section 1, part I), explains what understanding access to medicines through a human-rights based lens means (part II), summarizes human rights elements necessary for the realization of access to medicines (part III), and examines the tension between intellectual property (IP) rights and international human rights commitments (part IV). Part V focuses on key populations that encounter specific challenges within the broad landscape of enabling access to medicines, and Part VI recommends rights-based interventions and practices. After a tabular overview of the most relevant international and regional human rights standards related to the topic (Section 2), Section 3 discusses relevant human rights-based approaches to advocacy, litigation, and programming. Section 4 highlights specific country examples that have been successful in advancing the right to health and access to medicines for all, and the final section offers a glossary for further reading. What are the issues and how are they human rights issues? I. An overview of the international human rights framework Access to essential medicines, nested in the right to the highest attainable standard of health, is well founded in international law. The 1946 Constitution of the World Health Organization and the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) both expressly recognize the right to health. The 1966 International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), which has 164 states parties, elaborates that the right to health includes "access to health facilities, goods, and services." In General Comment 14 (2000) on the right to health, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) interprets the normative content of article 12 of the ICESCR. 8 Although the ICESCR only requires the progressive realization of the right to health in the context of limited resources, there is a core set of minimum obligations which are not subject to progressive realization, including access to essential medicines. 9 The WHO, numerous national court cases and resolutions of the Human Rights Council, and the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health reaffirm access to essential medicines as a human right that must be available "for all." While states hold the core responsibility for essential medicines provision, these responsibilities are shared with other non-state actors. For example, pharmaceutical companies have human rights responsibilities described by the former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, including the duty to take all 5 United Nations (UN), "Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages," SDGs fact sheet, http://www.un.org/ sustainabledevelopment/health/. 6 While access to treatment for HIV/AIDS is still a challenge for many, "new HIV infections in 2013 were estimated at 2.1 million, which was 38 per cent lower than in 2001." United Nations (UN), "Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages," SDGs fact sheet, http://www.un.org/ sustainabledevelopment/health/. 7 In 2014 alone NTDs affected an estimated 1.7 billion people. However, insufficient R&D is invested in treating and preventing NTDs, "further amplified by the fact that many [of these diseases] require chronic and costly care.
This chapter will introduce you to key issues and resources in access to medicines and human righ... more This chapter will introduce you to key issues and resources in access to medicines and human rights. In addition, this chapter will help you understand why, more now than ever, access to medicines must be understood and approached as a human rights issue. Some of these issues are also addressed in Chapter 1 on Patient Care, Chapter 2 on HIV/AIDS, Chapter 3 on Tuberculosis and Human Rights, and Chapter 5 on Palliative Care and Human Rights. The chapter is organized into ve sections that answer the following questions: 1. How is access to medicines a human rights issue? 2. What is a human rights-based approach to advocacy, litigation, and programming? 3. What are some examples of effective human rights-based work in the area of access to medicines? 4. Where can I nd additional resources on human rights-based approach to access to medicines? 5. What are key terms related to a human rights-based approach to access to medicines?
Realizing Roma Rights, 2017
Health and Human Rights: An …, 2011
Based on an introductory course at the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health ... more Based on an introductory course at the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions, this multi-contributor textbook covers public health history, development, and organization (chapters 12), analytic tools and methods (chapters 310), behavior ...