Accra, Dec 10, GNA – Ghana will join the rest of the world on Sunday, December 12, 2021, to commemorate this year’s Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Day.
The UN General Assembly (UNGA) on December 12, 2012, endorsed a resolution urging countries to accelerate progress toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC) – the idea that everyone, everywhere should have access to quality, affordable health care – as an essential priority for international development.
Five years later, after the endorsement, the United Nations proclaimed December 12 as International Universal Health Coverage Day (UHC Day) in 2017.
The goals of UHC are to ensure that all people can access quality health services, to safeguard all people from public health risks, and to protect all people from impoverishment due to illness, whether from out-of-pocket payments for health care or loss of income when a household member falls sick.
The Day seeks to raise awareness of the need for strong and resilient health systems and universal health coverage with multi-stakeholder partners, call on leaders to make bigger and smarter investments in health, and encourage diverse groups to make commitments to help move the world closer to UHC by 2030.
Statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO) indicate that approximately, half of the world’s population lacks access to such essential health services.
Therefore, to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.8 of Universal Health Coverage for all by 2030, at least one billion more people would need to have access to essential health services in each five-year period between 2015 and 2030.
The SDG target 3.8, focuses on achieving universal health coverage, including financial risk protection, access to quality essential health-care services and access to safe, effective, quality, and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all.
According to the WHO, over 930 million people spend at least 10 per cent of their household income on health.
A situation, which needs to change if Ghana as well as other countries want to meet SDG target 3.8.
On this day, countries, particularly Ghana will assess progress made towards the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals, which focus on Universal Health Coverage for all.
Source: Ghana News Agency
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