UHC2030 urges leaders to implement financial protection for health care at the World Health Summit and the UNITE Summit

World Health Summit 

The World Health Summit 2024 was held in Berlin from 13-15 October with the theme "Building Trust for a Healthier World”. 

Throughout the conference, UHC2030 shared a clear message: universal health coverage (UHC) and financial protection for health is the basis for achieving health for all and leaving no one behind. Financial protection is an integral part of universal health coverage, and we can only achieve progress if quality health services are not only available and affordable, but if people are also protected from being pushed into or further into poverty when paying for services out of their own pockets. 

On 14 October 2024, UHC2030 and the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and Adolescents (GFF) hosted a panel discussion titled “Closing the gap: addressing financial hardship to advance gender equality and UHC”. The event provided a platform to discuss financial barriers to accessing health services, which are particularly high for women, and the imperative to address gender inequalities to advance progress on UHC. The session was moderated by Dr. Magda Robalo, co-chair of the UHC2030 Steering Committee and President and Co-founder of the Institute for Global Health and Development. It included a keynote address by Dr. Ethel Maciel, Secretary of Health Surveillance and Environment of Brazil, and a panel discussion with:  

• Dr. Adepeju Adeniran, experienced clinical and public health physician, Founder and National Co-chair of Women in Global Health (WGH) Nigeria 
• Dr. Lia Tadesse Gebremedhin, Executive Director of Harvard Ministerial Leadership Program, former Minister of Health of Ethiopia  
• Taimur Khan Jhagra, Acasus Senior Expert, former Provincial Minister of Pakhtunkhwa for Finance and Health, Pakistan  
• Luc Laviolette, Head of Secretariat, GFF 
• Tjedu Moyo, Youth Representative to the Global Financing Facility Investors Group, Executive Director, Lunia Centre for Youths, Zimbabwe 
• Gisela Scaglia, UHC Movement Political Panel member, Vice Governor of the Province of Santa Fe, Argentina, former Member of Parliament of Argentina, and UNITE Chapter Chair Latin America & the Caribbean 

The session emphasized that globally, as a result of gender bias in health, women’s health issues are underfunded, under-researched, and poorly understood. This leads to higher risks of infections, diseases and preventable deaths, especially during pregnancy and childbirth. Women and girls frequently suffer from conditions that could have been prevented or treated if their health concerns were prioritized. Gender inequalities in power, resources and autonomy, in addition to the high costs associated with accessing health services, continue to limit women and girls’ ability to get timely medical support, perpetuating cycles of poor health outcomes, deepening social and economic disparities, and worsening socioeconomic factors such as poverty, lack of education, and limited job opportunities. 

Key messages from speakers included: 

• Primary and community-based healthcare can provide tailored services to women. Investments in training are needed to ensure gender-sensitive interactions and put an end to stigma and discrimination.  
• Inclusive health insurance schemes can guarantee protection from impoverishing health costs, including for informal workers, many of whom are women. This would not only improve financial protection, but also empower women by giving them autonomy to seek care without needing third-party consent. 
• Achieving UHC and gender equality requires strong political will, gender-sensitive and gender-responsive policies and legislation, gender-disaggregated data, and a whole-of-society approach.  

 

UNITE GLOBAL Summit 

The UNITE Global Summit took place on 16 October 2024, providing a forum for forging partnerships between parliamentarians and leaders from the global health community. 

On 15 October in the run-up to the UNITE Summit, UHC2030 and the UNITE Parliamentarians Network for Global Health organized a roundtable to discuss the role of members of parliament in preventing healthcare-related poverty. The session was hosted by GIZ and the Germany Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and moderated by Dr. Magda Robalo, co-chair of the UHC2030 Steering Committee and President and Co-founder of the Institute for Global Health and Development.  

The roundtable convened parliamentarians from around the world who are part of the UNITE Parliamentarians Network for Global Health as well as Kalipso Chalkidou, Director of Health Financing and Economics from the World Health Organization (WHO) and Luc Laviolette, Head of the Secretariat of GFF to share their recommendations on financial protection reforms and sustainable health financing. During the session, parliamentarians exchanged experiences on integrating UHC, and particularly financial protection for health, into legislation and budgets in their countries. They discussed the challenges and successes they have faced and expect to face when prioritizing health and accelerating their countries’ progress on UHC. Topics ranged from leaving no one behind to health financing, data, AI, gender responsiveness, and the roles of subnational and national governments and the private sector. The session was closed by Dr. Ricardo Baptiste Leite, member of parliament from Portugal and founder and President of the UNITE Parliamentarians Network for Global Health.  

On 16 October 2024, during the UNITE Global Summit, Dr. Magda Robalo participated in a conversation on the current global state of UHC and financial protection. Dr. Robalo emphasized that the world is off track to achieve UHC by 2030, with nearly 2 billion people experiencing financial hardship because they must pay out of their own pocket for their health care. Speaking to an audience of current and former members of parliaments, congresses and senates from over 50 countries, she highlighted that, over the past two decades, financial protection has progressively deteriorated in 70% of countries. She reminded the audience that it is the government’s responsibility to realize people’s right to health and to protect them from impoverishing health costs and to abolish financial barriers to health care and products that could lead to foregone care. 

Dr. Robalo then shared success stories from several countries that have adopted laws and budgets to accelerate progress on UHC and financial protection. She urged parliamentarians to propose and approve legislation and budgets that provide the basis for essential health benefits packages and adequate, stable and predictable funding for health systems anchored in primary health care. She also emphasized that health and financial protection must be placed at the heart of health laws, programs and budgets to improve the health of populations, develop stronger and more inclusive communities, increase productivity and build resilient economies. 

Photo credit: ©Steffen Kugler/WS 19

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