Description

The 4th UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs is a unique chance to renew focus on access to essential medicines for NCDs and set the agenda to address barriers to diagnostics and medical devices. The gap in commitments for NCDs is particularly wide. As global organisations working on access to medicines and technologies, we urge Member States to commit to strengthening health systems by advancing Universal Health Coverage (UHC). This means fully integrating essential medicines, diagnostics and medical devices for NCDs into UHC, with a focus on the public health sector, especially primary care, and ensuring referral pathways to specialist care when necessary. Our new policy brief outlines five recommendations intended to support WHO Member States in making meaningful progress towards this goal and accelerating action on existing commitments.