The right to medical care, as a category of human rights, falls under the heading of Leistungsrechte; that is, rights of the individual that require of the state that it do something--in this instance to provide the services concerned. In South Africa the government's health care policy contemplated involves (a) differentiation based on race in the provision of health care services; and (b) privatization of such services. It is submitted that in developing societies, where private initiative cannot cope with the demands in respect of health care, privatization would be premature and existing inequalities in health care services provided for the different racial groups require greater government involvement, with a view to eliminating racial discrimination through programmes of affirmative action. Privatization, furthermore, requires government-sponsored incentives, such as tax concessions, that would inspire private persons to contribute financially towards health care services.
医疗保健权作为一项人权，属于给付权范畴；也就是说，这类个人权利要求国家有所作为——在此情形下是提供相关服务。在南非，政府所设想的医疗保健政策涉及：(a) 在提供医疗保健服务方面基于种族进行区分；以及(b) 此类服务的私有化。有人认为，在发展中社会，由于私人主动性无法满足医疗保健方面的需求，私有化时机尚不成熟，而且为不同种族群体提供的医疗保健服务中现存的不平等现象需要政府更多地参与，以便通过平权行动方案消除种族歧视。此外，私有化需要政府提供诸如税收优惠等激励措施，以促使私人在经济上为医疗保健服务做出贡献。
