Essex University, UK.
J Law Med Ethics. 2012 Summer;40(2):220-33. doi: 10.1111/j.1748-720X.2012.00660.x.
Although access to medicines is a vital feature of the right to the highest attainable standard of health ("right to health"), almost two billion people lack access to essential medicines, leading to immense avoidable suffering. While the human rights responsibility to provide access to medicines lies mainly with States, pharmaceutical companies also have human rights responsibilities in relation to access to medicines. This article provides an introduction to these responsibilities. It briefly outlines the new UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and places the human rights responsibilities of pharmaceutical companies in this context. The authors draw from the work of the first UN Special Rapporteur on the right to the highest attainable standard of health, in particular the Human Rights Guidelines for Pharmaceutical Companies in Relation to Access to Medicines that he presented to the UN General Assembly in 2008, and his UN report on GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). While the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights are general human rights standards applicable to all business entities, the Human Rights Guidelines for Pharmaceutical Companies consider the specific human rights responsibilities of one sector (pharmaceutical companies) in relation to one area of activity (access to medicines). The article signals the human rights responsibilities of all pharmaceutical companies, with particular attention to patent-holding pharmaceutical companies. Adopting a right-to-health "lens," the article discusses GSK and accountability. The authors argue that human rights should shape pharmaceutical companies' policies, and provide standards in relation to which pharmaceutical companies could, and should, be held accountable. They conclude that it is now crucial to devise independent, accessible, transparent, and effective mechanisms to monitor pharmaceutical companies and hold them publicly accountable for their human rights responsibilities.
尽管获得药品是享有能达到的最高健康标准的权利（“健康权”）的一个重要特征，但仍有近 20 亿人无法获得基本药物，导致大量本可避免的痛苦。虽然提供获得药品的机会主要是国家的人权责任，但制药公司在获得药品方面也有其人权责任。本文介绍了这些责任。它简要概述了新的联合国工商业与人权指导原则，并将制药公司的人权责任置于这一背景下。作者借鉴了第一任联合国享有能达到的最高健康标准的人权问题特别报告员的工作，特别是他于 2008 年向联合国大会提交的《制药公司在获得药品方面的人权准则》，以及他关于葛兰素史克（GSK）的联合国报告。虽然工商业与人权指导原则是适用于所有企业实体的一般性人权标准，但《制药公司在获得药品方面的人权准则》则考虑了一个部门（制药公司）在一个活动领域（获得药品）的具体人权责任。本文指出了所有制药公司的人权责任，特别关注拥有专利的制药公司。本文从健康权“视角”出发，讨论了 GSK 与问责制问题。作者认为，人权应该塑造制药公司的政策，并提供标准，使制药公司能够并应该对其人权责任负责。他们的结论是，现在至关重要的是制定独立、可访问、透明和有效的机制，以监测制药公司并公开追究其人权责任。
