Abstract
The right to a standard of living adequate for health and well-being has been proclaimed as a human right by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As a logical corollary, mental health is an essential, inter-linked, and indivisible component of the human right to health. All persons are entitled to receive timely, quality, affordable mental health care and to be treated with dignity and respect, without any form of discrimination. However, this chapter argues that the human right to mental health comprises of much more than access to quality health care. Mental health as a human right is not merely the absence of mental illnesses but a complete state of well-being that addresses underlying determinants of health as well. This chapter discusses the components of mental health as a human right and the related international standards; it presents and critiques the current law and policy framework pertaining to mental health in India; and identifies the gaps in the same which ought to be addressed in the near future.
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Uma, S. (2024). Contextualizing Law and Policy Framework on Mental Health. In: Anand, M. (eds) Mental Health Care Resource Book. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-1203-8_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-1203-8_7
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