Universal Health Coverage, Priority Setting, and the Human Right to Health

The Lancet, vol. 390, issue 10095, p. 712-14, 2017. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)30931-5.

6 Pages Posted: 12 Feb 2021

See all articles by Benedict Rumbold

Benedict Rumbold

University College London

Rachel Backer

Glasgow Caledonian University

Octavio Luiz Motta Ferraz

King's College London - The Dickson Poon School of Law

Sarah Hawkes

University College London

Carleigh Krubiner

Johns Hopkins University - Berman Institute of Bioethics

Peter Littlejohns

King’s College School of Medicine

Ole Frithjof Norheim

University of Bergen

Thomas Pegram

University College London

Annett Rid

King’s College London

Sridhar Venkatapuram

King’s College London

Alex Voorhoeve

London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE)

Daniel Wang

Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV) - Fundação Getulio Vargas Law School at São Paulo

Albert Weale

University College London - Department of Political Science

James Wilson

University College London

Alicia Ely Yamin

Harvard University - Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics; Harvard University - Harvard Law School; Partners in Health; Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI) - Center on Law and Social Transformation; Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health

Pau Hunt

University of Essex

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: April 26, 2017

Abstract

Following endorsement by WHO, the World Bank, and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, the drive towards universal health coverage (UHC) is now one of the most prominent global health policies. As countries progress towards UHC, they are forced to make difficult choices about how to prioritise health issues and expenditure: which services to expand first, whom to include first, and how to shift from out-of-pocket payment towards prepayment. Building on extensive philosophical literature on the ethics of priority setting in health care, a 2014 WHO report provided guidance about how states can resolve these issues. However, policy makers face a further question largely left unanswered by the report: how do states’ moral and legal obligations regarding the right to health fit with their obligations to set health priorities fairly?

Keywords: universal health coverage

Suggested Citation

Rumbold, Benedict and Backer, Rachel and Ferraz, Octavio Luiz Motta and Hawkes, Sarah and Krubiner, Carleigh and Littlejohns, Peter and Norheim, Ole Frithjof and Pegram, Thomas and Rid, Annett and Venkatapuram, Sridhar and Voorhoeve, Alex and Wang, Daniel and Weale, Albert and Wilson, James and Yamin, Alicia Ely and Hunt, Pau, Universal Health Coverage, Priority Setting, and the Human Right to Health (April 26, 2017). The Lancet, vol. 390, issue 10095, p. 712-14, 2017. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)30931-5., Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3734295

Benedict Rumbold

University College London ( email )

Gower Street
London, WC1E 6BT
United Kingdom

Rachel Backer

Glasgow Caledonian University ( email )

City Campus
Cowcaddens Road
Glasgow G4 0BA, Scotland
United Kingdom

Octavio Luiz Motta Ferraz

King's College London - The Dickson Poon School of Law ( email )

Somerset House East Wing
Strand
London, WC2R 2LS
United Kingdom

Sarah Hawkes

University College London ( email )

Gower Street
London, WC1E 6BT
United Kingdom

Carleigh Krubiner

Johns Hopkins University - Berman Institute of Bioethics ( email )

1809 Ashland Ave.
Baltimore, MD 21205
United States

Peter Littlejohns

King’s College School of Medicine ( email )

London
United Kingdom

Ole Frithjof Norheim

University of Bergen ( email )

Muséplassen 1
N-5008 Bergen, +47 55 58
Norway

Thomas Pegram

University College London ( email )

Gower Street
London, WC1E 6BT
United Kingdom

Annett Rid

King’s College London ( email )

Strand
London, England WC2R 2LS
United Kingdom

Alex Voorhoeve

London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE) ( email )

Houghton Street
London, WC2A 2AE
United Kingdom

Daniel Wang (Contact Author)

Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV) - Fundação Getulio Vargas Law School at São Paulo ( email )

São Paulo
Brazil

Albert Weale

University College London - Department of Political Science ( email )

29/30 Tavistock Square
London, WC1H 9QU
United Kingdom

James Wilson

University College London ( email )

Gower Street
London, WC1E 6BT
United Kingdom

Alicia Ely Yamin

Harvard University - Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics ( email )

23 Everett Street
Cambridge, MA 02155
United States

Harvard University - Harvard Law School ( email )

1563 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States

Partners in Health ( email )

641 Huntington Ave, 1st Floor
Boston, MA 02115
United States

Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI) - Center on Law and Social Transformation ( email )

PO Box 6033 Postterminalen
Bergen, NO-5892
Norway

Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health ( email )

Bostone, MA 02115
United States

Pau Hunt

University of Essex ( email )

Wivenhoe Park
Colchester, CO4 3SQ
United Kingdom

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