Health Equity

Working with local health workers to create a healthier, more equitable world where everyone, everywhere has access to the care they need to thrive

Our Approach

Every day, millions of people go without the basic health care services they need to live a full, healthy life — many of them living in under-resourced communities, facing the consequences of colonization, and dealing with economic and political marginalization.

Project HOPE is working to bridge the gaps and build a fairer world by working toward the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target 3.8 to achieve universal health coverage (UHC) to ensure that everyone has access to quality essential health services and safe, effective, and affordable essential medicines and vaccines.

We show up when hospitals are short-staffed and where communities live beyond the reach of formal health services, from rural villages in Indonesia and clinics on the Colombia-Venezuela border to birthing centers in Sierra Leone.

Around the world, our teams:

Operate Mobile Medical Units to reach communities without access to the local health system
Respond to disasters and emergencies, paying special attention to hard-to-reach communities in rural areas or near conflict zones
Increase education opportunities for health workers to expand the global health workforce
Improve health care access for groups often overlooked by formal health systems, like migrant families, refugees, pregnant women, and children
Strengthen local health systems with the equipment and human resources they need to scale operations
Support young people in accessing greater opportunity and raising their voices for change
Train health workers with the skills they need to reduce health disparities in their communities

60 million

lives can be saved by scaling up access to primary health care

Improving health equity in low and middle-income countries by providing communities with access to health care could increase average life expectancy by 3.7 years.

92%

of countries’ health systems were disrupted during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic

In 2022, 84% of countries were still reporting pandemic disruptions, worsening health inequities and widening disparities in health care access.

1 billion

people are at risk of falling into poverty due to out-of-pocket health spending

To create a more equitable world, we must ensure that communities have access to essential, lifesaving health care, regardless of cost.

The Context

Health is a fundamental human right.

Project HOPE firmly believes that access to health care should not depend on your gender, age, race, resident status, religion, income, disability, or neighborhood. Sadly, in most of the world, the type and quality of health care you receive depends on these factors.

Unfortunately, the world is not on track to make significant progress towards SDG 3.8’s target of universal health coverage by 2030. Across the globe, health service coverage improvements have stagnated since 2015 and an increasing number of people are facing catastrophic levels of out-of-pocket health spending. These inequities cost lives and prevent people from living a full, healthy life.

We are working with local health workers, health systems, governments, and partners to create a world where everyone, everywhere, can access the health care they need to reach their full potential.