Human Rights Impact Assessment: A Method for Healthy Policymaking

Two decades ago, Lawrence Gostin and Jonathan Mann developed a methodology for human rights impact assessment (HRIA) of proposed public health policies. This article looks back over the last 20 years to examine the development of HRIA in the health field and consider the progress that has been made since Gostin and Mann published their pioneering article. Health-related HRIA has advanced substantially in three ways. First, the content of the right to health has been delineated in greater detail through domestic and international laws and policies. Second, the UN human rights mechanisms have recommended that governments undertake HRIAs and have issued guidelines and methodologies for doing so. Third, nongovernmental organizations and international organizations have developed HRIA tools and carried out case studies to demonstrate their feasibility. In this light, the article concludes by recognizing the substantial progress that has been made in HRIA over the last 20 years and by considering some challenges that remain for health-related HRIA.