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Gorik Ooms on 19th AIDS Conference

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Gorik Ooms of the HDBF was invited as one of the speakers at the 19th International AIDS Conference, to discuss the future global health priorities. The Millennium Development Goals, including three specific health goals, are supposed to be achieved by 2015. They will not be achieved, but the international community has already begun to consider what should come after 2015. It looks as if Universal Health Coverage will be the next internationally agreed health goal. This could be good news, as it confirms that all people should have access to health services – and it sounds a bit like global social protection for health too, doesn’t it? However, if it is not firmly rooted in the right to health and in national and international responsibilities, the package of services could be very poor in poor countries. As the acceptance of global responsibility for health is the legacy of the global movement against AIDS, it would be great if this movement would embrace and influence Universal Health Coverage. So far, that is not happening, but HDBF will do what it can to make it happen. Watch Gorik Ooms’ talk here.