The Medical Women’s International Association expresses concern that, despite significant progress, 4.5 billion people remain without access to essential health services, and 2 billion face catastrophic health expenditures.

Amid concerning trends of diminishing multilateralism and the de-prioritization of global health, Member States must urgently prioritize national investments in Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and ensure financial protection for the most vulnerable populations.

In alignment with the 2030 Global Agenda for Sepsis, launched at the German Bundestag, we call on governments to integrate sepsis into national UHC packages. Sepsis clinical and epidemiological data can serve as proxy indicators of how effectively national health systems and UHC are functioning.

We cannot achieve Universal Health Coverage goals without addressing sepsis, which affects nearly 50 million people annually, accounts for 1 in every 5 deaths, and consumes 2.6% of healthcare budgets.