Introduction: The Goal for 2030—Health Equity for All

Abstract

The unrelenting COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated long-existing health disparities both within countries and between wealthier and lower-income nations. The disease disproportionately affect the poor and vulnerable, who are less able to recover economically, get vaccinated, and face increasing learning and wealth gaps. The pandemic caused extreme poverty to increase for the first time in more than 20 years, resulting in 100 million more people living on less than $2 a day, according to the World Bank [1]. In fact, the International Council of Nurses notes in a recent report that the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals to promote long-term well-being and survival are unlikely to be achieved by 2030 unless world leaders make a renewed commitment and action to “ensure that no one is left behind” [2]. Oxfam International cautions that as wealthier nations recover from the pandemic, “the biggest rise in inequality since records began” could materialize [3].