The 12th of December was International Universal Health Coverage Day.
Every person—no matter who they are or where they live—should be able to get the quality health services they need without facing financial hardship. This is the message we fully believe here on Physiopsot and at Physiopedia.
Universal health coverage (UHC) ensures all people, everywhere, can get the quality health services they need without facing financial hardship. It is a fundamentally political goal, rooted in the right to health. It is also one of the smartest investments any country can make.
On the 12th of December 2012 the UN unanimously endorsed a resolution urging countries to accelerate procress towards UHC and reiterating it as an essential for international development. Two years later the UHC Coalition begin to celebrate the 12th of December as UHC day with the aim to hold leaders accountable to their pledge of UHC. In 2017 the 12th was specifically designated as International UHC Day and here we are today having made some albeit limited progress towards this goal.
Therefore this year the UHC Coalition has created a toolkit (specific links below) for us all to use to promote the message and keep moving towards their 2030 target if free healthcare for all. Let’s make sure this isn’t something we all only think about once a year – this has to be something we talk about regualrly. To hit the message home we need to share stories from our global profession. We can be advocates for our patients and encourage systems to change for the better.