Great expectations for the World Health Organization: A Framework Convention on Global Health to achieve universal health coverage

Public Health

Volumn 128, Issue 2, 2014, Pages 173-178

  Ooms, G ^a   Marten, R ^b   Waris, A ^c   Hammonds, R ^a   Mulumba, M ^d   Friedman, E A ^e  

^a INSTITUTE OF TROPICAL MEDICINE   (Belgium)

^b ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATION   (United States)

^c UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI   (Kenya)

^d Center for Health Human Rights and Development   (Uganda)

^e GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY LAW CENTER   (United States)

Author keywords

Convention; Human rights; Right to health; Universal health coverage

Indexed keywords

HUMAN RIGHTS; PUBLIC HEALTH; REFORM PROCESS; WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION;

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT; ECONOMIC EVALUATION; FUNDING; HEALTH CARE ACCESS; HEALTH CARE AVAILABILITY; HEALTH CARE FINANCING; HEALTH CARE NEED; HEALTH CARE PLANNING; HEALTH PROGRAM; HUMAN; HUMAN RIGHTS; PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE; REVIEW; SOCIAL STATUS; WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION;

CONVENTION; HUMAN RIGHTS; RIGHT TO HEALTH; UNIVERSAL HEALTH COVERAGE;

HUMANS; UNIVERSAL COVERAGE; WORLD HEALTH; WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION;

EID: 84892788565     PISSN: 00333506     EISSN: 14765616     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2013.06.006     Document Type: Review

References (36)

1. Gostin L.O., Friedman E.A., Ooms G., Gebauer T., Gupta N., Sridhar D., Chenguang W., Røttingen J.-A., Sanders D. The Joint Action and Learning Initiative: towards a global agreement on national and global responsibilities for health. PLoS Medicine 2011, 8(5):e1001031.
2. Moon S., Bermudez J., 't Hoen E. Innovation and access to medicines for neglected populations: could a treaty address a broken pharmaceutical R&D system?. PLoS Medicine 2012, 9(5):e1001218.
3. Friedman E.A., Gostin L.O., Buse K. Advancing the right to health through global organizations: the potential role of a framework convention on global health. Health and Human Rights: An International Journal 2013, 15(1). Available at: http://www.hhrjournal.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/13/2013/06/Friedman-FINAL.pdf (Website available approx June 15).
4. World Health Organization. The world health report 2010. Health systems financing: the path to universal coverage. Geneva: World Health Organization. Available at: (accessed 31 March 2013). http://whqlibdoc.who.int/whr/2010/9789241564021_eng.pdf.
5. Chan M. The place of health on the post-2015 development agenda. Opening remarks at an informal Member State consultation on health in the post-2015 development agenda 14 December 2012, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.who.int/dg/speeches/2012/mdgs_post2015/en/index.html.
6. World Health Organization Universal health coverage: five questions 2012, World Health Organization, Geneva, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.who.int/health_financing/universal_health_coverage_5_questions.pdf.
7. Evans D.B., Marten R., Etienne C. Universal health coverage is a development issue. Lancet 2012, 380(9845):864-865.
8. United Nations General Assembly Global health and foreign policy Dec. 12, 2012, U.N. Doc. A/RES/67/81, General Assembly Res. 67/81, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/67/L.36%2526referer=http://www.un.org/en/ga/info/draft/index.shtml%2526Lang=E.
9. Horton R. Offline: a rainbow on my desolate land. Lancet 2013, 381(9870):890.
10. Ooms G., Brolan C., Eggermont N., Eide A., Flores W., Forman L., Friedman E.A., Gebauer T., Gostin L.O., Hill P.S., Hussain S., McKee M., Mulumba M., Siddiqui F., Sridhar D., Van Leemput L., Waris A., Jahn A. Universal health coverage anchored in the right to health. Bulletin of the World Health Organization 2013, 91. 2-2A.
11. Boerma T. Measurement of trends and equity in coverage of health interventions in the context of universal health coverage 2012 Sept 17-21, Meeting report, Rockefeller Foundation Center, Bellagio, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.worldwewant2015.org/file/279371/download/302866.
12. Vega J. Universal health coverage: the post-2015 development agenda. Lancet 2013, 381(9862):179-180.
13. World Health Organization Positioning health in the post-2015 development agenda October 2012, WHO Discussion Paper, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.worldwewant2015.org/bitcache/7c4f4f265f3d2dfdfed54c06afee939039865522?vid=302852%2526disposition=attachment%2526op=download.
14. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, G.A. res. 2200A(XXI), 21 U.N.GAOR Supp. (No. 16) at 49, U.N. Doc. A/6316 (1966). Available at: (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/instree/b2esc.htm.
15. United Nations. MDG list. Available at: (accessed 31 March 2013). http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/Resources/Attach/Indicators/OfficialList2008.pdf.
16. Taskforce on Innovative International Financing for Health Systems. More money for health, and more health for the money. Available at: (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.internationalhealthpartnership.net/fileadmin/uploads/ihp/Documents/Results___Evidence/HAE__results___lessons/Taskforce_report_EN.2009.pdf.
17. Schrecker T. Interrogating scarcity: how to think about 'resource-scarce settings'. Health Policy and Planning August 16, 2012, Advance access published.
18. Ooms G. Shifting paradigms: how the fight for 'universal access to AIDS treatment and prevention' supports achieving 'comprehensive primary health care for all'. Globalization and Health 2008, 4:11.
19. World Health Organization. Background document for the Taskforce on Innovative International Financing for Health Systems. Working group 1: constraints to scaling up and costs. Available at: (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.internationalhealthpartnership.net/fileadmin/uploads/ihp/Documents/Results___Evidence/HAE__results___lessons/Working%2520Group%25201%2520Technical%2520Background%2520Report%2520(World%2520Health%2520Organization).pdf.
20. Organization of African Unity Abuja declaration on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and other related infectious diseases 2001, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.un.org/ga/aids/pdf/abuja_declaration.pdf.
21. World Health Organization World health statistics 2012 2012, World Health Organization, Geneva, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.who.int/healthinfo/EN_WHS2012_Part3.pdf.
22. International Monetary Fund Regional economic outlook. Sub-Saharan Africa: maintaining growth in an uncertain world October 2012, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/reo/2012/afr/eng/sreo1012.pdf.
23. Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights General comment 14, the right to the highest attainable standard of health (Twenty-second session, 2000) 2000, U.N. Doc. E/C.12/2000/4, Available from:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/gencomm/escgencom14.htm.
24. Maastricht principles on extraterritorial obligations of states in the area of economic, Social and cultural rights. Available at: (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.fian.org/fileadmin/media/publications/2012.02.29_-_Maastricht_Principles_on_Extraterritorial_Obligations.pdf.
25. African Union Roadmap on shared responsibility and global solidarity for AIDS, TB and malaria response in Africa 2012, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.au.int/en/sites/default/files/Shared_Res_Roadmap_Rev_F%255b1%255d.pdf.
26. Fürher H. The story of official development assistance 1996, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.oecd.org/dac/1896816.pdf.
27. Frenk J., Moon S. Governance challenges in global health. New England Journal of Medicine 2013, 368(10):936-942.
28. World Health Organization Programme budget 2012-2013 2011, World Health Organization, Geneva, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://whqlibdoc.who.int/pb/2012-2013/PB_2012-2013_eng.pdf.
29. People's Health Movement Comments on 'The future of financing for WHO' 64th World Health Assembly (WHA) May 2011, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.democratisingglobalhealth.org/sites/www.democratisingglobalhealth.org/files/Future%2520Financing%2520of%2520the%2520WHO%2520-%2520PHM%2520May%25202011.pdf.
30. Greenhill R., Prizzon A. WHO foots the bill after 2015? What new trends in development finance mean for the post-MDGs 2012, ODI Working Paper 360, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.odi.org.uk/sites/odi.org.uk/files/odi-assets/publications-opinion-files/7905.pdf.
31. Mason Meier B. The World Health Organization, the evolution of human rights, and the failure to achieve health for all. Global health and human rights 2010, Routledge, London. J. Harrington, M. Stuttaford (Eds.).
32. Hawkes N. "Irrelevant" WHO outpaced by younger rivals. BMJ 2011, 343:d5012.
33. Schwarz T. A stronger voice for civil society at the World Health Assembly? 2010, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.medicusmundi.org/en/contributions/reports/2010/a-stronger-voice-of-civil-society-at-the-world-health-assembly.
34. World Health Organization WHO reforms for a healthy future: report by the Director-General October 15, 2011, Doc. EBSS/2/2, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/EBSS/EBSS2_2-en.pdf.
35. Sridhar D., Gostin L.O. Reforming the World Health Organization. Journal of the American Medical Association 2011, 305(15):1585-1586.
36. Democratizing Global Health Coalition Letter by the democratizing global health coalition to the WHO Regional Director for Africa for the sixty-first session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa August 26, 2011, Available at:, (accessed 31 March 2013). http://www.ghwatch.org/sites/www.ghwatch.org/files/DGHCoalition_Letter2AFRORegionalDirector.pdf.