Date: Tuesday 18 February 2025
Time: 11.00am – 12.00pm GMT
Location: Virtual

The International Longevity Centre UK is hosting an insightful webinar on Universal Health Coverage in Low-and-Middle-Income Countries, supported by Amgen. Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is a key goal for national and international stakeholders and is essential for ensuring people live longer, healthier lives. However, older adults are often overlooked in policy discussions on health equity, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).  

While LMICs have made significant progress in improving UHC service coverage over the past two decades, their populations are ageing quickly. Indeed, by 2050, it is estimated the global number of older adults will more than double, rising to 2.1 billion, and 80% of them will reside in LMICs. 

The world is already off track to achieving UHC by 2030. Except for low- income countries, lower-middle and upper-middle income countries have witnessed an increase in out-of-pocket health costs. Moreover, older households are most at risk of catastrophic out-of-pocket health spending. Without careful consideration and concerted policy response to the health needs of older adults, achieving UHC for all will be impossible. The broader impacts of COVID-19, the climate crisis and other threats to global health security mean that now more than ever, we need to make achieving UHC a reality. 

In this project, we’ve used our Healthy Ageing and Prevention Index and compared it with secondary metrics like the World Health Organisation (WHO) UHC indicators. We have also worked with HelpAge International, to speak to older adults from LMICs and give them a voice at the global level. We will showcase their experiences with the healthcare system and the barriers they face accessing it to help identify what needs to happen to move the needle on UHC.  

Join us for an engaging webinar featuring a presentation of our research, insights from expert speakers, and an interactive Q&A session.