Right To Health

Most recently “The Economist”, my favourite weekly news magazine, produced an impact study on Health Inclusivity. This feature allows readers to look at several factors relating to inclusivity of health among the social determinant of health. As a Canadian, my first impulse is to compare my Country’s results and score to that of the country below the 49th parallel. Exciting to my Canadian Healthcare pride, I see that Canada has a higher overall rating than the United States, not all that surprising. What is surprising is one domain in particular- “The Right to Health”. This economist impact study defines this as “ Existence of the 'right to health' principle (or the right to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health) in national constitution and/or government strategies.”

On this level Canada scores a perfect 100, while the United States scores a 0- meaning that the United States does not incorporate a “Right to Health” in their constitution. This seems baffling to me. The country with the seemingly highest regards for freedom and liberty does not include a right to health in their constitution.