Reinforcing collaboration on Universal Health Coverage to deliver greater global health equity and health security

Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is defined to mean that everyone, everywhere, should have access to the health services (health promotion, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment) they need without risking falling into financial hardship.

UHC is a major cornerstone of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and is the backbone of robust health systems that are needed to deliver greater global health equity and health security.

Building on the work we did in 2019 in collaboration with UHC2030 and other stakeholders, and on our own Policy Perspectives on UHC, the innovative pharmaceutical industry stands together with other members of the global health community to support countries in accelerating their efforts to achieve UHC targets set in the SDGs. Despite the progress made, there is a long way to go, with half of the world’s population still lacking access to the quality health services they need, when and where they need them, including during emergencies.

Collectively, we must recognize and support the role of innovation, enabling strong health systems and multi-stakeholder partnerships to improve readiness, resilience and countries’ future health security. The innovative pharmaceutical industry stands together with other members of the global health community to support countries in accelerating their efforts to achieve UHC.

There are three key areas which we believe are most critical to achieving UHC:

• Ensure health system readiness and resilience for UHC (post-COVID-19)
• Invest more and invest better toward achieving UHC
• Leverage private sector innovation, contributions, and partnerships