title: Health reform in Pakistan: a call to action.
abstract: Pakistan's enormous macroeconomic, internal, and human security challenges coexist alongside the opportunity created by a huge desire for change. With democracy taking root and a new constitutionally ushered era in state governance, The Lancet Series about Pakistan and health focuses on health as a nation-building and social-welfare agenda at a time of unprecedented social upheaval and economic hardships in the country. We call for a unified vision for the goal of universal and equitable health access. We provide recommendations for six objectives for policy and action. Higher political priority for health, increased investments, a combination of targeted and universal approaches, action in terms of the social determinants, institutionalisation of the right organisational network, and frameworks for accountability are crucial for the attainment of the health goals in Pakistan.
authors.affiliation: Heartfile, Islamabad, Pakistan. sania@heartfile.org
authors.forename: Sania
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nishtar
authors.forename: Zulfiqar A
authors.initials: ZA
authors.lastname: Bhutta
authors.forename: Tazeen H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Jafar
authors.forename: Abdul
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ghaffar
authors.forename: Tasleem
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Akhtar
authors.forename: Kaiser
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bengali
authors.forename: Qazi Asmat
authors.initials: QA
authors.lastname: Isa
authors.forename: Ejaz
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rahim
mesh_terms: D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration; D035082:Federal Government; D018166:Health Care Reform / Q000458:organization & administration; D006291:Health Policy; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D010154:Pakistan