The World Health Organization (WHO), World Bank have jointly published the 2023 Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Global Monitoring Report which revealed that about 4.5 billion people, more than half of the global population, not fully covered by essential health services.
The report was released on Monday ahead of the high-level meeting of the UHC at the 78th United Nations General Assembly, exposed a stark reality based on the latest available evidence that two billion people face severe financial hardship paying out-of-pocket for the services and products they needed.
The report also found out that over the past two decades, less than a third of countries have improved health service coverage and reduced catastrophic out-of-pocket health spending and most countries for which data available on both UHC dimensions (96 out of 138) off-track in either service coverage, financial protection, or both.
WHO Director-General, Dr Tedro Ghebreyesus in his reaction said, “The COVID-19 pandemic was a reminder that healthy societies and economies depend on healthy people. The fact that so many people cannot benefit from quality, essential health services not only puts their own health at risk.
“It also puts the stability of communities, societies and economies at risk. We urgently need stronger political will, more aggressive investments in health, and a decisive shift to transform health systems based on primary health care”, Ghebreyesus added.
While the Vice President for Human Development, World Bank, Mamta Murthi said, “We know that achieving Universal Health Coverage is critical step in helping people escape, stay out of poverty, yet there continues to be increased financial hardship, especially for the poorest and most vulnerable people”.
Murthi noted that, “This 2023 report paints a dire picture, but also offers evidence on ways to prioritize health in government budgets, strengthen health systems for greater equity in both the delivery of essential quality health services and financial protection.”
The report further revealed that health service coverage improved since the beginning of the century, progress has slowed since 2015, when the Sustainable Development Goals were adopted. Notably, there was no improvement from 2019 to 2021.
While services for infectious diseases saw significant gains since 2000, there has been little to no improvement in service coverage for noncommunicable diseases and reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health services in recent years.
In 2021, about 4.5 billion people, more than half of the global population, were not fully covered by essential health services. And this estimate does not yet reflect the potential long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Catastrophic out-of-pocket health spending, defined as exceeding 10% of a household budget, continues to rise. More than one billion people, about 14% of the global population, experienced such large out-of-pocket payments relative to their budgets.
But even small expenditures in absolute terms can be devastating for low-income families; approximately 1.3 billion individuals were pushed or further pushed into poverty by such payments, including 300 million people who were already living in extreme poverty.
Adding that out-of-pocket health payments can also cause individuals to forego essential care and force families to choose between paying for a visit to the doctor, buying food and water, or sending their children to school.
Such trade-offs can spell the difference between the early treatment of a preventable disease and, at a later stage suffering severe illness or even death. Addressing this problem requires progressive health financing policies that exempt those with limited ability to pay for health services.
It stated that achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by 2030 is crucial for fulfilling the promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and realizing the fundamental human right to health.
To reach the goal of UHC, substantial public sector investment, accelerated action by governments, development partners are essential include radical reorientation of health systems towards a primary health care approach, advancing equity in healthcare access and financial protection, and investing in robust health information systems.
These shifts are essential to counter the impact of COVID-19 on health systems and the health workforce globally, as well as new challenges posed by macroeconomic, climate, demographic, and political trends that threaten hard-won health gains worldwide.
The 2023 UHC Global Monitoring Report serves as a wake-up call to the global community, highlighting the urgent need to prioritize, invest in UHC to ensure that everyone gains access to quality, affordable, and accessible healthcare without suffering financial hardship.