R4D is working with policymakers, implementers, researchers, and development partners to identify better ways for low- and middle-income countries to improve access to effective health care and reduce poverty from catastrophic health care expenditures by moving towards universal health coverage (UHC). R4D’s UHC program consists of four separate, but related, areas of work:
- Increased global knowledge, discussion, and facilitation of collaborative learning through the Joint Learning Network for Universal Health Coverage (JLN) – a platform for facilitation of knowledge exchange and the co-production of new knowledge among countries implementing reforms to accelerate progress towards UHC, with a comprehensive knowledge hub that aggregates information and serves as a go-to repository for worldwide news and resources related to UHC.
- Supporting countries to design policies and programs for UHC by providing policy analysis and advice to help countries develop options for raising revenue, pooling resources, purchasing effective services, and organizing their reforms, such as serving as a key technical advisor to the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) – the secretariat of India’s High-Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage, assisting the Government of South Africa with choosing the best options for organizing and paying for a new national health insurance program, and partnering with USAID’s Health Financing and Governance Project that aims to increase the use of priority health services by helping countries strengthen their health financing and governance systems.
- Producing analysis to strengthen the evidence base for UHC through high-impact analysis such as the Transitions in Health research initiative designed to foster greater understanding of the factors influencing health spending in low and middle income countries and the Lancet UHC series that documents multiple facets of what is happening with UHC globally.
- Creating linkages between public and private actors to promote public stewardship of mixed health systems through the Center for Health Market Innovations – a comprehensive web platform that gathers reliable, relevant, and up-to-date information on more than 1000 health market innovations in over 100 countries – and providing Secretariat support for the HANSHEP Health Systems Hub, which aims to support learning, networking and collaboration among global health practitioners, policymakers, researchers and development partners committed to creating equitable and sustainable health systems for all.