World Leaders Unite in Their Response to COVID-19

_{From PRNewswire/}

• The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the global economy and threatened to undo decades of progress made in health care 
• Health: A Political Choice – Act Now, Together is the latest in a series of titles produced in collaboration with the World Health Organization. It calls on key actors to unite in their response to the pandemic and other imminent and long-term threats 
• The publication launches during the World Health Summit – this year a fully digital, interactive conference with a free-to-view programme – and coincides with the 75th anniversary of the United Nation General Assembly

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented global disruption and challenges. It has highlighted and widened existing gaps in universal health coverage and exposed the pressing need for high-quality essential health services for all – without a price tag.

Health: A Political Choice – Act Now, Together calls on world leaders to unite in their response to the COVID-19 pandemic and other imminent and long-term threats to population health and the global economy. It is the latest in a series of titles produced in collaboration with the World Health Organization, the first of which – Health: A Political Choice – called for UHC.

This year’s prestigious line-up of authors includes Amina J. Mohammed, deputy secretary-general of the UN, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director general, and president of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa.

The publication focuses on five key areas:

1. Inclusive economics, defined by a new social contract and the pursuit of progress for all 
2. The fundamental requirements for a healthy life 
3. Equitable investments and making UHC a reality 
4. Health in the digital age and how technology can help reshape the human rights agenda 
5. The long-term outlook on global health 

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said:

“It has never been clearer that health is a political and economic choice. In the past 20 years, countries have invested heavily in preparing for terrorist attacks, but relatively little in preparing for the attack of a virus – which, as the COVID-19 pandemic has proven, can be far more deadly, disruptive and costly.

“This will not be the last pandemic. But when the next one comes, the world must be ready. Part of every country’s commitment to build back better must therefore be to public health, as an investment in a healthier and safer future.”