Advancing SRHR in Universal Health Coverage

Universal health coverage (UHC) means that quality health services are accessible to everyone without financial burden. While UHC encompasses a wide range of health services, it is crucial to prioritize girls and women’s health needs, particularly their sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), to make UHC and health care for all a reality.

To achieve genuine UHC, we must recognize the health needs of all people, without exception. This requires the integration of SRHR into healthcare services, ensuring that every person can make choices about their bodies and sexual and reproductive health (SRH). This fundamental right should be upheld free from discrimination, stigma, violence, or coercion. SRHR are critical to fully realizing the right to health for girls, women, and gender-diverse people; and UHC is paramount to achieving the right to health, universal access to comprehensive SRHR services, and overall health and well-being of all people.

BODILY AUTONOMY FREE FROM DISCRIMINATION, STIGMA, VIOLENCE OR COERCION

Achieving UHC mandates that the full suite of health care services — including comprehensive sexuality education (CSE), contraceptive services, maternal and newborn care, treatment of HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections, safe abortion care, gender-based violence, infertility, cancer, and sexual health and well-being — is available and financially feasible for everyone. To reach this goal, comprehensive SRH care, including adolescent and youth-friendly SRH services, must be incorporated into the core of healthcare services. These services should be accessible to every individual within a country’s population.