Access to essential medicines in national constitutions.

Access to essential medicines is well founded in international law as part of the right to the highest attainable standard of health (" the right to health "). The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights adopted in 1966 calls for States Parties to take steps to ensure access to medical services for all. General Comment 14, added in the year 2000, applies the principles of accessibility, availability, appropriateness and assured quality to goods and services, including essential medicines as defined by the World Health Organization's (WHO's) Action Programme on Essential Drugs. One important success factor for the legal enforcement of access to essential medicines is the incorporation of right-to-health principles into national constitutions. In one study, in 11 out of 12 middle-income countries in which successful court cases in support of access took place there was supportive constitutional language and, in the twelfth country , international treaties ratified by the State acquire the status of national law. 1 Constitutional recognition of the right to access to medical products and technologies has therefore become a country progress indicator in WHO's Medium-term strategic plan for 2008–2013. 2 WHO recently published a first baseline study for this indicator, including a database and analysis of all health-related texts in national constitutions. 3 The study reports that 135 (73%) of 186 national constitutions include provisions on health or the right to health. Of these, 95 (51%) constitutions mention the right to access health facilities, goods and services, 62 (45%) include in-text reference to equity and non-discrimination and 111 (82%) include one or more article(s) mandating the right to be treated equally or freedom from discrimination. Four national constitutions (2%) specifically mention universal access to medicines. In Mexico, " (women) are entitled to medical and obstetrical attention , medicines, nursing aid and infant care services. Members of a worker's family shall be entitled to medical attention and medicines, in those cases and in the proportions specified by law ". In Panama, " the State is primarily obligated to (…) supply medicines to all the people ". In the Philippines, " the State shall (…) endeavour to make essential goods, health and other social services available to all people at affordable cost ". In the Syrian Arab Republic, " the State protects the citizens' health and provides them with the means of protection, treatment and medication ". Some constitutions, such as those of Cuba, Nicaragua …