Tracking Universal Health Coverage: 2017 Global Monitoring Report

Universal health coverage (UHC) means that all people can obtain the health services they need without suffering financial hardship. This report looks at how many people globally lack access to essential health services and how many are pushed into poverty or spending too much of their household budgets on health care expenses. It shows that, although they may have access to some health services, more than half of the world’s more than 7.3 billion people do not receive all of the essential services they need. In terms of financial protection, over 800 million people spend at least 10 percent of their household budgets to pay for health care, and about 100 million people are pushed into extreme poverty due to their health expenditures.