The value of a human rights perspective in health and foreign policy

What could public health advocates do more effectively to encourage governments to act on underprioritized global health concerns? One important component largely missing from current strategies is the international human rights framework. Human rights principles and standards, including the right to the highest attainable standard of health, offer powerful moral arguments which can reinforce calls for action made on humanitarian grounds. In addition, the human rights framework brings into play established systems of national and international legal obligations and tools to assess performance by governments and international institutions. This enables the private sector and civil society to hold accountable all actors involved in achieving sustainable progress on major health challenges.