The Advances and Challenges in Universal Health Coverage

Dear Colleagues,

According to World Health Organization, Universal Health Coverage (UHC) means that all people have access to the health services that they need without financial difficulties, including the full range of essential health services, from health promotion to prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), adopted in September 2015 as a successor to the Millennium Development Goals, look toward 2030 to set health sector goals not only for developing countries but also for developed countries, further strengthening international efforts toward "no one left behind”. SDG3 aims to "ensure the healthy lives and promote the well-being of all people of all ages". In this context, UHC is identified as Target 3.8: “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 order to achieve SDG 3, "Health and Well-being for All," it is important to evaluate and monitor the status of health care in each country using uniform indicators. Yet, there are many difficulties, such as different health systems, differences in the implementation of surveys and statistics, and financial challenges. On the other hand, the rapid globalization of the world reminds us that health issues in other countries can also affect us, for example, the global COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, we should not forget that health crises can more severely affect the most vulnerable people.

For this Special Issue, we broadly invite manuscripts on the following areas related to UHC in life-course: financial risk protection; reproductive, maternal, newborn and children’s health; infectious diseases; non-communicable diseases; mental health; substance abuse; health-related water and sanitation; and health service capacity and access, including human resources.

Dr. Tomoko Kodama
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• universal health coverage
• sustainable development
• financial risk protection
• reproductive
• maternal
• newborn and child health
• infectious diseases
• non-communicable diseases
• mental health
• Substance abuse
• water and Sanitation related to health
• health service capacity
• access
• human resources