The Right to Qualitative Health Care in Nigeria: A Quest for Law Reform

ABSTRACT

Human rights are inherent to all human beings, regardless of their nationality, place of residence, sex, or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status. Health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. The right to health guarantees the right to life, on which other social, economic and political rights are hinged. The right to health involves availability, accessibility, acceptability, and quality of public health and health care facilities, goods and services. The availability of counterfeit drugs is a direct infringement on the right to health, which provides that health care must not only be affordable, accessible and acceptable, but must be of good quality.  Nigeria has a robust and comprehensive legal framework.  However, their effect is not being felt due to enforcement challenges. The rights of victims to compensation has not been provided for. This paper calls for law reform in this regard, proposing the adoption of the template provided for by the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGP). The UNGP promotes the principles of ‘protect, Respect and Remedy’.