Background: Proponents of free market conservatism object to the idea of a right to health per se, distinguished from a right to health care. They insist on the importance of economic growth and private affluence, efficiency in production and consumption in the health sector, and eschew governmental regulation. Discussion: The free market conservative approach to health care ignores some fundamentals of human rights discourse, the basic features of international law, and the demands for economic justice in the health sector. This is particularly problematic in light of the economic disparities between industrialized and developing countries, as well as the immense global burden of disease in the latter. Summary: 1. The right to health is a fundamental human right, having the status of a non-derogable right. 2. The declaratory tradition of international law, with its attention to progressive achievements, does not eliminate State obligations to recognize, protect, and fulfill the right to health. 3. A just economy recognizes the obligation of States to regulate distribution in the health sector. 4. Globalization elicits attention to the task of articulating a global public health ethics. Health and human rights are complementary approaches to the advancement of human well being. --Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, Director-General, World Health Organization The naive idealist who thinks he knows truth—without accounting for competing claims of the self-interests of others—is a danger. We need the insight of both children to forge truly moral social policies. --Joel Rosenthal, President, Carnegie Council on Ethics in International Affairs