Public International Law and Human Health: Bridging Conceptual Gaps Through Governance

Abstract

The lack of a consolidated set of norms, principles, and procedures in international health law reflect the haphazard manner in which the protection of human health has been addressed at the international level. But this does not mean that public international law does not play a role in promoting the improvement of human health. Rather, international health law can also contribute to shaping claims in other legal regimes. This can be ascertained by looking into developments in fields, such as international economic law, where human health has been directly at stake. On that account, this contribution lists some of the legal instruments that constitute norms of public international law with the core objective of the protection of human health. Then, a brief review of recent rulings from adjudicators in international investment and trade law is undertaken for assessing the way in which this crosscutting interpretation has taken place. Furthermore, the proliferation of non-binding documents dealing with issues of human health requires a broader approach than source-based legal positivism. Thus, the usefulness of the concept of governance for tackling the limited and fragmented array of binding instruments of international health law, as well as the challenges the concept poses for legal doctrine, are discussed. Keywords: International Health Law, International Investment Law, International Trade Law, Fragmentation of International Law, Tobacco Regulation