Summary
Health is a fundamental human right – enshrined in the WHO constitution and the declaration of Alma Ata. However, after 40 years, inequality, poverty, exploitation, violence and injustice are still keeping one Billion people from accessing health care. To achieve health for all, inequities have to be overcome, powerful interests to be challenged, and political and economic priorities must be transformed to achieve health for all.
Realising the vision of Alma Ata is more urgent than ever:
- Applying the principles of Primary Health Care as declared at Alma Ata 1978 is critical in achieving health for all by 2030.
- Community engagement and ownership is the key to health for all and essential for building resilient health systems that allow all people to access the health care they need.
- A skilled and motivated health workforce is at the centre of health systems at all levels. It must be recognized that community health workers play an essential part in realising universal health coverage and health for all.
- Strong people’s organisations and movements are fundamental to strong health systems.
- Access to essential medicines of good quality at an affordable price is part of health for all. Policies must ensure that research costs are delinked from the price of drugs and everyone has the right to access essential medicines.
- Health for all demands inter-sectoral collaboration and must provide access to prevention, promotion, treatment, care, rehabilitation and palliative care to everyone within a sustainable framework.
- Health is not only a matter of human rights, it is a matter of justice and requires a redistribution of wealth and significant changes in the global economic order.
- Equity in health and social justice must be the basis for all decision making.
- To ensure access to health services to all, service provision through public and not-for-profit providers must be given the primacy in health system planning and implementation. The ambiguities regarding UHC must be resolved with health care financing policies structured to prevent the commodification and marketisation of health care.
Download full document: Translating “Health for All” into the Present and Future (PDF)
