PLoS Medicine
(Accessed 11 January 2014)
http://www.plosmedicine.org/

Essay
Improving Women’s Health through Universal Health Coverage
Jonathan Quick mail, Jonathan Jay, Ana Langer
http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.1001580

Summary Points
:: Unequal access to health care contributes to shortcomings in women’s health at all ages. The post-2015 United Nations development framework must address these inequalities globally.
:: Universal health coverage (UHC) is considered a leading candidate among health-related targets. It is the one approach that reduces inequitable access and addresses the full range of women’s health issues with the full spectrum of health services.
:: UHC has proven a powerful driver for women’s health in low- and middle-income countries including Afghanistan, Mexico, Rwanda, and Thailand. Success requires a gender-sensitive approach to design and implementation around (1) the essential services package, (2) improving access to services, (3) eliminating financial barriers, (4) reducing social barriers, and (5) performance monitoring.
:: To expand coverage and effectively deliver quality services to all women, health systems must become stronger around leadership, management, financing, human resources, community involvement, and other critical elements.
:: Essential measures of UHC include women’s access to health care, coverage equity for essential services for women, financial protection for women and impact on women’s health outcomes. Post-2015 UHC indicators should retain the Millennium Development Goals’ focus on priority health outcomes.
:: Women’s health must be a shared agenda for which success requires active engagement by country political and health leadership; civil society, including advocates for women’s health, sexual, and reproductive health rights; multilateral agencies; global health funders; and all others concerned with women’s health and equity.