UHC2030 Co-Chair Statement at the NCD Multistakeholder Hearing

"We all know there is no path to effectively address noncommunicable diseases without universal health coverage, and I want to acknowledge and thank many of you today who have spoken to the importance of UHC. With NCDs causing 41 million deaths, as we've heard (75% of global mortality) and costing over $2 trillion annually, timely access to affordable health services is an imperative. 

This issue is critical for the poorest and most vulnerable populations. In low- and middle-income countries, over 60% of people living with cancer and cardiovascular disease spend more than 40% of their income on care, forcing families to make impossible choices between seeing a doctor or putting food on the table. No one should have to experience this kind of catastrophic financial burden for seeking health care that we believe is a human right. 

To reverse current trends, countries must prioritize sustainable health financing to achieve universal health coverage and address the root causes of inadequate financial protection. Without this focus, healthcare costs will continue to trap households in cycles of debt and illness, perpetuating intergenerational poverty and poor health.

We therefore call on governments to fully integrate noncommunicable diseases, including mental health, into universal health coverage policies and benefit plans, and remove the financial barriers that prevent people from getting the care they need. 

Our theme this past UHC Day was “Health: It's on the government”, and we see our governments as having major responsibilities to take the lead in making sure that we're addressing financial protections. So we have three recommendations in that light. 

1. Reduce out-of-pocket expenditures by integrating medicines, diagnostics, health technologies, services and palliative care for noncommunicable diseases into national health benefit packages to achieve UHC.
2. Dismantle disease-specific silos, which lead to inefficiencies and worsening health inequities, and integrate person-centered noncommunicable disease prevention and control into primary health care services, as a core component in national health strategies.
3. Ensure the active participation of people living with, or at risk of, NCDs, in governance and health decision-making to co-create effective prevention and inclusive health responses.

Together, we must reinforce the fundamental right to health, including for people living with and at risk of NCDs. We urge country and world leaders to make sustainable investments in equitable and resilient systems that will make health for all a reality. 

We know what to do. There is an urgency to move from commitment to action. Thank you."

-Dr Pamela Cipriano, Co-chair of the UHC2030 Steering Committee

Watch the recording of the discussion here