The right to health in the 1982 constitution

ABSTRACT Master's Thesis The Right to Health in the 1982 Constitution Cahit Baybars KAYHAN Dokuz Eylül University Institute of Social Sciences Department of Public Law Public Law Program The right to health is a right which enables the individuals to improve their health when they are sick and is given in order to protect the health of individuals. In accordance with this purpose, the individuals have a right to benefit from the medical care and treatment provided by the state. As the right to health is a social right, it is the primary right that should be provided to the citizens of all states which claim to be a social state. The right to health is accepted among the social rights in doctrine, however, this right is closely related to many rights referred as the classic rights. In fact, it is possible for individuals to benefit from many basic rights and liberties only when they are healthy and can truly benefit from the right to health. There is a strong connection between the right to health and the right to live and this connection is accepted and has been emphasized also at the international level. In the first part of our study, the theoretical subjects such as the health concept and the meaning of the right to health, place of the right to health in human rights, historical development of the right to health in international areas and its place in international regulations are studied. The second part focuses on the historical development of the right to health as a social right in our country and how this right was regulated in the 1982 Constitution is studied. In this regard, if the right to health was regulated in 1982 Constitution in accordance with the social state approach or not and how it was stated in the norm control and individual application decisions of the constitutional court have been emphasized and Turkey's practice about the right to health has been tried to be embodied. Keywords: Health Concept, Right to Health, Social State, Social Rights, 1982 Constitution