Health Policy-Making Requirements to Attain Universal Health Coverage in the Middle-Income Countries: A Brief Report

Background: The middle-income countries (MICs) target universal health coverage through varieties of policies. However, they face many struggles such as socio-economic and political problems along with flawed policy-making process. Objectives: The current study aimed at presenting a very brief situational analysis of the health policy making and its outcomes in the MICs and accordingly some strategic suggestions to improve this process. Methods: The current brief review study was conducted on the existing evidence on challenges of health policy-making in MICs and its combating solutions. To search literatures, an unlimited time review was conducted in medical databases with predefined keywords. To classify the barriers and their solutions, the current study employed the World Health Organization (WHO) health systems framework; i.e. six building blocks. Results: Reviewing literatures conducted the researchers to the main challenges of health policy-making process in the MICs including poor governance, imperfect health information system, weak resource management, piecemeal plan instead of inclusive national plan, low efficiency, and equitable outcome of their public policies. Conclusions: To improve health policy-making process in MICs, a wide variety of strategies is applicable. These strategies are: (1) Replacing passive problem-solving approach with an active informed-policy making; (2) Preparing a master plan based on sustainability and reality, prediction power of the future events, and active participation of all stakeholders; (3) establishing a health system with focus on primary health care, service leveling, referral system, and integrated and quality care; (4) Effective health interventions, reducing corruption, managed use of private beside the public sector, and improvement of their contracting systems, equitable distribution of all resources, and establishing and/or strengthening health technology assessment (HTA) Committee; (5) Reinforcing the role of governance to control health market, community involvement, and mandatory health attachment to all policies.