Health for All: WHO Outlines 40 Actions to Ensure Disability-Inclusive Care

The WHO’s Global Report on Health Equity for Persons with Disabilities exposes widespread health disparities faced by over 1.3 billion people with disabilities and calls for systemic reforms to ensure inclusive, accessible, and equitable healthcare. It offers 40 actionable interventions backed by global case studies to drive this transformation.

The World Health Organization’s Global Report on Health Equity for Persons with Disabilities, developed in partnership with renowned research institutes such as the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the International Centre for Evidence in Disability, and the Centre for Inclusive Policy, delivers a stark and data-rich diagnosis of global health systems: they are failing over one billion people with disabilities. This failure persists despite decades of international conventions and resolutions, including the CRPD and the Sustainable Development Goals. The report goes beyond token advocacy to demand structural changes, urging health systems to evolve from exclusive and ableist frameworks into inclusive, rights-based models that serve all populations equally. It presents this issue as a public health crisis and a profound moral and policy failure that requires urgent and systematic action.

Stark Disparities and Systemic Exclusion

The report paints a distressing picture of what healthcare looks like for many people with disabilities. They are nearly twice as likely to perceive healthcare providers’ skills as inadequate, three times more likely to be denied healthcare outright, and four times more likely to be treated poorly. These inequalities are not the inevitable result of disability itself, but rather of environments and systems that are unaccommodating, discriminatory, and neglectful. Inaccessible facilities, lack of sign language interpreters, absence of health information in braille or simplified language, and unaffordable care are just a few of the hurdles that disproportionately affect this population. Negative attitudes from healthcare professionals and the routine exclusion of persons with disabilities from health policy-making processes further compound the situation. This exclusion has rendered many national health systems structurally blind to the unique needs and rights of persons with disabilities.

From Fragmented Progress to Comprehensive Reform

Though the WHO notes some positive developments since its 2011 World Report on Disability, including more countries enacting protective laws and integrating disability into public health strategies, the progress has been inconsistent, fragmented, and often poorly implemented. Many national systems still lack comprehensive data on disability, leading to policies that are at best generic and at worst exclusionary. Moreover, health budgets rarely allocate funds specifically for inclusive services, and training programs for healthcare workers seldom include disability competence modules. In low- and middle-income countries, where the majority of persons with disabilities reside, these gaps are particularly severe. The report criticizes the charity-based or medicalized models that have long dominated disability discourse and instead champions a participatory, rights-focused approach that incorporates persons with disabilities as equal partners in health governance.

A Blueprint for Inclusive Health Systems

Offering a practical way forward, the WHO lays out a set of 40 actionable interventions designed to eliminate health inequities, address social determinants of health, and strengthen inclusive systems. These interventions range from ensuring physical accessibility of health facilities and transport to integrating accessible communication methods and removing financial barriers to care. A key pillar of the report is its emphasis on training healthcare providers in disability competence and building inclusive leadership within health ministries. The WHO presents real-world examples to demonstrate feasibility. In Brazil, family health teams include community health workers trained specifically to support persons with disabilities. South Korea offers public subsidies for medical devices and personal care, easing the financial burden on individuals. Countries like Fiji and Zambia are developing health information systems capable of disaggregating data by disability, making health outcomes easier to track and address. These case studies serve as powerful reminders that inclusive systems are not just possible; they already exist in fragments and can be scaled with political will and proper investment.

Inclusion is the Future of Public Health

The WHO stresses that making health systems disability-inclusive is not a fringe concern but central to building resilient, equitable, and effective healthcare for all. Disability inclusion, the report argues, complements other health priorities such as ageing, noncommunicable diseases, and pandemic preparedness. The COVID-19 pandemic made painfully clear that those on the margins, especially persons with disabilities, bear the brunt of health system failures. Conversely, designing systems with the most marginalized in mind can increase resilience and flexibility for everyone. Inclusive systems are not merely more just, they are smarter, more efficient, and better prepared for future global health challenges. As climate change and demographic shifts place new strains on health systems worldwide, disability-inclusive approaches are essential to long-term sustainability and success.

In its final message, the report makes a compelling appeal to governments, development agencies, donors, and civil society: the time for half-measures and rhetorical commitments is over. Health equity for persons with disabilities is a matter of justice, not charity; of systemic design, not exceptional provision. It is also a smart investment in human capital and social well-being. The world already possesses the tools, evidence, and real-world models to transform health systems. What is lacking is not capacity, but resolve. The WHO’s report is more than a critique, it is a roadmap, a manifesto, and a challenge to all who shape public health policy. It calls for nothing less than a transformation of health systems to serve all people with dignity, equality, and care.