Posted by Michael Wonder on 30 Mar 2020
New WHO guide to help countries expand access to essential medicines
30 March 2020 - WHO’s new user guide for countries, ‘Selection of medicines at country level’, is based on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines.
It sets out the key actions countries should undertake to develop and update their own national essential medicines lists based on the treatment needs of their populations and their capacity to reimburse payments for medicines.
The document also aims to support countries in progressing towards universal health coverage. Today, approximately half of the world’s population is unable to access essential medicines. The large majority of these people live in poorer countries, but rising prices of new medicines are also becoming a challenge for health systems in wealthy countries.
