Resource Type: Brief
Authors:  Health Finance and Governance Project
Published: 6/1/2015

Resource Description: A functional health system delivers the quality health care people need, where they need it, at prices they can afford. The United States Agency for International Development’s Health Finance and Governance (HFG) Project collaborates with partners in lower middle-income countries to increase their domestic resources for health, manage those precious resources more effectively, and make wise purchasing decisions. Effective health finance is linked closely to robust health governance. When the governance of the health sector and its resources is weak, then investments in technical areas are far less likely to achieve their intended results or yield better health outcomes. Strong health governance ensures that health sector resources and funds achieve their goals. Building more financial sustainability into health services, such as HIV and AIDS programs, helps ensure that more people can get the health care they need to lead productive lives.

Active in more than 25 countries, USAID’s HFG Project partners with health stakeholders to protect families from catastrophic health care costs, expand access to priority services – such as maternal and child health care – and ensure equitable population coverage. These three pillars are at the crux of the global movement for Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

HFG Project Brief – Improving Health Finance and Governance Expands Access to Life-Saving Health Care