GITAHI: Access to health is a human rights issue and CSU will level the playing field

Chances are you've been to a fundraiser in the past few months or sent money to cover your medical expenses. for a majority of Kenyans, a prolonged illness often results in the sale of productive badets to offset medical expenses.

Financial barriers continue to hinder access to quality health care, with many individuals and households falling into poverty. 19659004] The first Global Monitoring Report, entitled "Monitoring Universal Health Coverage", indicates that in about half of African countries, including Kenya, 40% or more of health expenditures are made up of direct payments to households, The most regressive way to finance health care.

In Kenya, it is estimated that one-third of health expenditure is paid out of pocket at the time of the request for care.

The use of this payment mechanism creates financial barriers to access to health services and may impoverish the population.

The data show that catastrophic health expenditures and impoverishment remain low in countries where direct spending is lower. 15 percent of total health expenditure. In addition, few households are impoverished when the direct cost is less than 20% of their health expenditure.

Insufficient investment in the health sector and slow response to the environmental and social factors that affect health continue to affect health outcomes if drastic measures are not taken to improve the overall health of our people.

The first step in meeting our health challenge is to understand and appreciate that health is a basic human right. It is unacceptable that millions of people still face death, disability, disease or impoverishment for reasons that could be treated at a limited cost.

The approach of the & rsquo; right to health & # 39; globally accepted requires the right goods, services and numbers; they are financially and geographically accessible, and accessible on the basis of non-discrimination; that they respect the culture of individuals, minorities, peoples and communities, sensitive to gender and life cycle requirements; and are of good quality sufficient to produce the desired results.

Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is an essential aspect of the realization of the right to health of the individual. Its basic principle is that everyone receives the necessary health services without financial difficulties.

It is therefore a critical and often cost-effective element of any strategy aimed at combating poverty and social exclusion.

An effective UHC system requires adequate human resources – including community health workers; adequate facilities fully equipped with essential drugs, equipment and other supplies; and adequate financial resources so that all people – regardless of wealth – can obtain the necessary services without suffering financial difficulties.

All of this focuses first and foremost on primary health care and on those who stay the furthest behind because the CHU is strongly pro-poor. the right to health requires that the authorities take a bottom-up approach in engaging with the excluded and develop policies to include them in the health system and social system more broadly.

Universal health coverage must be supported by policies and services The social and environmental determinants of health for individuals and populations, and a national commitment to universal health coverage must be anchored in a rights-based framework .

The government must prioritize and move away from vertical interventions that address individual diseases. focus more on improving broader health systems.

If properly implemented, UHC will boost economic growth by ensuring a more productive workforce; to facilitate educational gains by ensuring healthier children; and empowering women and reducing poverty badociated with health costs.

UHC can significantly improve health outcomes, reduce inequities, and generate sustained economic growth.