Right to Health in GATS: Can The Public Health Exception Pave the Way for Complementarity?
Gola, S
Date: 27 December 2020
Article
Journal
Pace International Law Review
Publisher
Pace Law School, Pace University
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Abstract
Trade in health-related services, such as hospital, medical professional and sanitation, have potential to
improve health outcomes for Countries. Yet, health-related services are least liberalised services sector
under GATS. Reluctance of WTO members can be attributed to the scepticism that GATS restricts the
public health policies ...
Trade in health-related services, such as hospital, medical professional and sanitation, have potential to
improve health outcomes for Countries. Yet, health-related services are least liberalised services sector
under GATS. Reluctance of WTO members can be attributed to the scepticism that GATS restricts the
public health policies and their ability to protect, promote and fulfil their right to health obligation as
signatory to ICESCR. Examining the specific interaction between the right to health and public health
exception in GATS, this paper demonstrates that WTO members can raise public health exception to justify
trade-restrictive public health policies aimed at fulfilling the right to health. It argues that good faith and
harmonious interpretation of the public health exception in GATS taking into account the right to health
not only brings complementarity between international human rights and international trade law regimes
but further advances systemic integration and (de)fragmentation of public international law.
Law School
Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
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