12 December 2021

Each year, Dec. 12 marks Universal Health Coverage Day (UHC). This year’s theme was Leave No One’s Health Behind: Invest in Health Systems for All. To celebrate UHC and raise awareness of the imperative of Health for All, MEPs Mobilising for Diabetes launched a campaign highlighting the role of governments and health systems in protecting everyone everywhere, especially the most vulnerable in our society.

UHC is based on the principle that everyone, everywhere should have access to quality essential health services without suffering financial hardship. It is also Target 3.8 of the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 – ‘Achieve universal health coverage, including financial risk protection, access to quality essential health-care services and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all.’

In many parts of Europe, people living with diabetes still do not have access to the therapies, care, supplies, technologies or education they need to achieve the best possible health outcomes. In light of this, our co-chairs, MEP Christel Schaldemose and MEP Sirpa Pietikäinen, respectively stressed the need to strengthen effective, accessible, resilient and innovative health systems and suggested that receiving good quality, effective healthcare should become an EU requirement and compulsory for Member States (MS) to fulfil this goal. MEP Alviina Alametsä underlined that access to good quality healthcare is a human right which must be guaranteed for people living with chronic diseases such as diabetes. MEP Sara Cerdas called on all stakeholders to see health as an investment and address the socio-economic determinants of health while striving to eliminate health inequities. MEP Sokol expressed the urgency with which we need to demand UHC and health systems that protect everyone.

MEP Christine Schneider underlined the key principle of UHC which is to ensure access to quality health services and medicines without placing the financial burden on the individual. Ms Schneider also recorded a video message emphasising the need to put people at the centre of all decision-making if we want to live in a healthier and more equitable world.

MEP Christine Schneider underlined the key principle of UHC which is to ensure access to quality health services and medicines without placing the financial burden on the individual. Ms Schneider also recorded a video message emphasising the need to put people at the centre of all decision-making if we want to live in a healthier and more equitable world.

Finally, MEP Kateřina Konečná noted that UHC is key to reducing inequalities and improving health outcomes for all, especially in the context of the COVID-19 crisis.

Read the postcards and watch the video messages from MEPs: