potable water, beyond the frontiers which is nutritionally adequate and freedom from hunger to everyone; food and medical supplies, and vulnerable most the to given be financial aid should or marginalized groups of the population. Moreover, given that some diseases are easily transmissible of a State, the safe, to ensure (c) To ensure access to basic shelter, housing sanitation, and an adequate supply of safe potable water; international community has a collective responsibility to address this problem. The economically developed States parties have a special responsibility and interest to assist the poorer developing States in this regard. (d) To provide essential drugs, as from time time defined under the WHO Action Programme Essential Drugs; 41. States parties should refrain at all times from imposing embargoes or similar measures restricting the supply of another State with adequate medicines and medical equipment. Restrictions on such goods should never be used as an instrument of political and economic pressure. In this regard, the Committee recalls its position, stated in General Comment No, 8, on the relationship between economic sanctions and respect for economic, social and cultural rights. (e) To ensure equitable distribution facilities, goods and services; (f) To adopt and health strategy and epidemiological implement a plan of action, evidence, of all and and to on health national public on the basis of addressing the health concerns of the whole population; the strategy and plan of action shall be devised, and periodically reviewed, on the basis of a participatory and transparent process; they shall include methods, such as right to health indicators and benchmarks, by which progress can be closely monitored; the process by which the strategy and plan of action are devised, as well as their content, shall give particular attention to all vulnerable or marginalized groups. 42. While only States are parties to the Covenant and thus ultimately accountable for compliance with it, all members of society - individuals, including health professionals, families, local communities, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations, as well as the private business sector - have responsibilities regarding the realization of the right to health. State parties should therefore provide an environment which facilitates 44. The Committee also confirms that the following are obligations of comparable priority: the discharge of these responsibilities. re 43. (a) To ensure reproductive, maternal (pre-natal well as post-natal) and child health care; iqati In General Comment No. 3, the Committee confirms that States parties have a core obligation to ensure the satisfaction of, at the very least, minimum essential levels of each of tHe rights enunciated in the Covenant, including essential primary health care. Read in conjunction instruments, the such International Development,?® as the with more contemporary Programme Conference the Alma-Ata on of Action Population Declaration of and provides compelling guidance on the core obligations arising from article 12. Accordingly, in the Committee's view, obligations: To ensure access to the minimum essential food —————— =—_—_ i Report Intemational _of _the Conference __on i i Sales No. Pee ahee resolution 1, annex, chaps. Vil and VIII. cer (d) To provide education and access to information concerning the main health problems in the community, including methods of preventing and controlling them; For the avoidance of any doubt, the Committee wishes to emphasize that it is particularily incumbent especially for vulnerable or marginalized groups; (United Nations subliceton (c) To take measures to prevent, treat and control epidemic and endemic diseases; 45. (a) To ensure the right of access to health facilities, goods and services on a non-discriminatory basis, 28 (b) To provide immunization against the major infectious diseases occurring in the community; (e) To provide appropriate training for health personnel, including education on health and human rights. these core obligations include at least the following (b) as on States parties and other actors in a position to assist, to provide “international assistance and cooperation, especially economic and technical”” which enable developing countries to fulfil their core and other obligations indicated in paragraphs 43 and 44 above. |, 29 Covenant, art. 2.1. GENERAL COMMENTS AND STATEMENTS 39