Universal health coverage (UHC) means that all people can obtain the health
services they need without suffering financial hardship.
People die due to financial hardship.
But the shocking truth is that this is a reality for millions of people every year, at least half of the world’s 7.3 billion people still do not have access to essential health services, such as having a skilled birth attendant, vaccinations for children etc.
According to the World Health Organization, WHO, more than 1 billion people live with uncontrolled hypertension, which can kill without treatment. Every day, more than 800 women die from causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. And because nearly 20 million infants do not receive the immunizations they need, they run the risk of dying from diseases like diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough) and measles.
Even when health services are available, using them can mean financial ruin. Every year, 100 million people are pushed into poverty because of health spending, and 179 million people spend more than a quarter of their household budget on health care – a level we consider to be “catastrophic health spending”.
Almost 70 years ago, WHO was founded on the conviction that health is a human right, not a privilege. This is a conviction I share. No one should get sick and die just because they are poor, or because they cannot access the health services they need.
Why should a child die from drinking unsafe water?
Why should a woman die from complications of childbirth that are treated easily even in most middle-income countries?
Why should a family have to choose between buying food and buying medicine?
Universal health coverage (UHC) is the practical expression of the right to health. It means that all people, including the most disadvantaged, can access the quality health services they need, when and where they need them, without facing financial hardship.
But UHC is about more than health insurance, or treating the sick – it’s about protecting the healthy by promoting healthy lifestyles and preventing disease.
The power of UHC is that it doesn’t only result in improved health. It also reduces poverty by eliminating one of its causes; it creates jobs for health and care workers; it drives inclusive economic growth by ensuring people are healthy and able to work; it promotes gender equality, because it is often women who miss out on health services; and it protects people against epidemics by ensuring outbreaks are prevented, detected early and contained.
People die due to financial hardship.
But the shocking truth is that this is a reality for millions of people every year, at least half of the world’s 7.3 billion people still do not have access to essential health services, such as having a skilled birth attendant, vaccinations for children etc.
According to the World Health Organization, WHO, more than 1 billion people live with uncontrolled hypertension, which can kill without treatment. Every day, more than 800 women die from causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. And because nearly 20 million infants do not receive the immunizations they need, they run the risk of dying from diseases like diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough) and measles.
Even when health services are available, using them can mean financial ruin. Every year, 100 million people are pushed into poverty because of health spending, and 179 million people spend more than a quarter of their household budget on health care – a level we consider to be “catastrophic health spending”.
Almost 70 years ago, WHO was founded on the conviction that health is a human right, not a privilege. This is a conviction I share. No one should get sick and die just because they are poor, or because they cannot access the health services they need.
Why should a child die from drinking unsafe water?
Why should a woman die from complications of childbirth that are treated easily even in most middle-income countries?
Why should a family have to choose between buying food and buying medicine?
Universal health coverage (UHC) is the practical expression of the right to health. It means that all people, including the most disadvantaged, can access the quality health services they need, when and where they need them, without facing financial hardship.
But UHC is about more than health insurance, or treating the sick – it’s about protecting the healthy by promoting healthy lifestyles and preventing disease.
The power of UHC is that it doesn’t only result in improved health. It also reduces poverty by eliminating one of its causes; it creates jobs for health and care workers; it drives inclusive economic growth by ensuring people are healthy and able to work; it promotes gender equality, because it is often women who miss out on health services; and it protects people against epidemics by ensuring outbreaks are prevented, detected early and contained.
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