Rajasthan’s Right to Health Bill

• Rajasthan has become the first state to pass in Assembly the Right to Health Bill.
• Under the Constitution, public health and sanitation, including hospitals and dispensaries, come under State List.
• Right to Health creates a legal obligation on states to ensure access to timely, acceptable, and affordable health care of appropriate quality.
• This includes safe and potable water, sanitation, food, housing, health-related information and education, and gender equality.
• Supreme Court in Bandhua Mukti Morcha v Union of India & Ors held that right to life (Article 21) included RTH within its fold.

Key Features of the Bill

• Extending a total of 20 rights, Bill gives every resident of the state right to avail free Out Patient Department (OPD) services and In Patient Department (IPD) services at all public health facilities.
• The Bill sets certain obligations on the state government to ensure the right to health and maintain public health.

Health Authorities will be set up at the state and district level. These bodies will formulate, implement, monitor, and develop mechanisms for quality healthcare and management of public health emergencies