This is especially relevant to SDG 3, which focuses on ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all at all ages. The article ties into this goal by emphasizing how UHC can provide equitable healthcare access and financial protection, ensuring that individuals don’t face financial hardship when seeking care. Achieving UHC is a critical step toward meeting the targets of SDG 3, which strives to make healthcare universally available, affordable, and effective for everyone, no matter where they live.

• Promote universal access to maternal care, including prenatal, delivery, and postnatal services.

• Strengthen healthcare facilities, especially in rural areas.

• Remove financial and social barriers to maternal health.

3.2 End preventable deaths of children under 5

• Invest in neonatal care, vaccination, and safe delivery practices.

• Focus on child nutrition and immunization programs.

• Educate families on child health, hygiene, and breastfeeding.

3.3 End epidemics of communicable diseases by 2030

• Expand access to diagnostics, treatments, and preventative care for diseases like AIDS, TB, malaria, and waterborne diseases.

• Support public health campaigns on disease prevention.

• Strengthen disease surveillance and early response systems.

3.4 Reduce premature mortality from non-communicable diseases

• Promote healthy lifestyles (diet, physical activity, smoking cessation).

• Integrate mental health services into primary healthcare.

• Ensure access to affordable NCD and mental health treatment.

3.5 Strengthen substance abuse prevention and treatment

• Raise awareness on risks of substance abuse.

• Expand addiction treatment and rehabilitation services.

• Develop community programs to prevent substance abuse.

3.6 Halve road traffic deaths and injuries by 2020

• Enforce road safety regulations (speed limits, seatbelts).

• Improve road infrastructure (pedestrian walkways, cycling lanes).

• Educate on safe driving practices.

3.7 Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health care by 2030

• Provide family planning services and education.

• Improve access to maternal and reproductive health services.

• Promote reproductive health education.

3.8 Achieve universal health coverage

• Ensure access to quality healthcare services for all.

• Expand health financing to reduce out of pocket costs.

• Ensure access to essential medicines and vaccines.

3.9 Reduce deaths and illnesses from pollution by 2030

• Strengthen environmental regulations (air, water, soil).

• Promote clean technologies and eco-friendly practices.

• Raise awareness of environmental health risks.

3.a Implement WHO Framework on Tobacco Control

• Enforce tobacco control policies (advertising bans, taxation).

• Provide smoking cessation programs.

• Raise public awareness of tobacco’s health risks.

3.b Support research for vaccines and medicines

• Invest in research for communicable and non-communicable disease solutions.

• Ensure affordable access to vaccines and medicines.

• Promote global partnerships for better access.

3.c Increase health financing and workforce recruitment

• Increase funding for healthcare systems.

• Invest in training and retaining healthcare workers.

• Strengthen workforce capacity, especially in developing countries.

3.d Strengthen capacity for early warning and health risk management

• Improve national health systems for risk management.

• Enhance global collaboration for health risk response.

• Promote health sector preparedness for crises.

3.2. Neonatal and child mortality
By 2030, end preventable deaths of newborns and children under 5 years of age, with all countries aiming to reduce neonatal mortality to at least as low as 12 per 1000 live births and under-5 mortality to at least as low as 25 per 1000 live births.

3.3. Infectious diseases
By 2030, end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases, and combat hepatitis, waterborne diseases and other communicable diseases.

3.4. Noncommunicable diseases
By 2030, reduce by one third premature mortality from noncommunicable diseases through prevention and treatment, and promote mental health and well-being.

3.5. Substance abuse
Strengthen the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, including narcotic drug abuse and harmful use of alcohol.

3.6. Road traffic
By 2020, halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents.

3.7. Sexual and reproductive health
By 2030, ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, including for family planning, information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes.

3.8. Universal health coverage
Achieve universal health coverage, including financial risk protection, access to quality essential health-care services, and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all.

3.9. Environmental health
By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination.

Goal 3 – Means of implementation for the targets

3.a. Tobacco control
Strengthen the implementation of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in all countries, as appropriate.

3.b. Medicines and vaccines
Support the research and development of vaccines and medicines for the communicable and noncommunicable diseases that primarily affect developing countries. Provide access to affordable essential medicines and vaccines in accordance with the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health, which affirms the right of developing countries to the fullest use of the provisions in the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS agreement) regarding flexibilities to protect public health and, in particular, provide access to medicines for all.

3.c. Health financing and workforce
Substantially increase health financing and the recruitment, development, training and retention of the health workforce in developing countries, especially in least developed countries and small island developing States.

3.d. Emergency preparedness
Strengthen the capacity of all countries, in particular developing countries, for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks.

Target 3.8. Universal health coverage 
This target can be seen as an overarching one that supports the achievement of the other targets. It is derived from the Millennium Development Goals, the new targets and the means of implementation.

3. Crude suicide rates (per 100 000 population) (SDG 3.4.2). (n.d.). World Health Organization (WHO). Retrieved January 30, 2025, from https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/themes/mental-health/suicide-rates

4. (n.d.). Targets of Sustainable Development Goal 3 - Targets of Sustainable Development Goal 3. Retrieved January 31, 2025, from https://www.who.int/europe/about-us/our-work/sustainable-development-goals/targets-of-sustainable-development-goal-3

5. Universal health coverage (UHC). (2023, October 5). World Health Organization (WHO). Retrieved January 31, 2025, from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/universal-health-coverage-(uhc)

6. Goal 3 | Department of Economic and Social Affairs. (n.d.). Sustainable Development Goals. Retrieved January 31, 2025, from https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal3#targets_and_indicators

7. Goal 3 | Department of Economic and Social Affairs. (n.d.). Sustainable Development Goals. Retrieved February 1, 2025, from https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal3#progress_and_info

• Global maternal mortality ratio declined from 227 deaths per 100,000 live births (2015) to 223 in 2020.

• To reach the global target of 70 per 100,000 live births, an annual reduction rate of 11.6% is required between 2021 and 2030.

• Sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia accounted for 87% (249,000) of global maternal deaths in 2020.

• Skilled birth attendance rose from 80% in 2015 to 86% in 2023, but sub-Saharan Africa had a rate of 73%.

Target 3.2: Under-Five and Neonatal Mortality

• Global under-five deaths decreased from 9.9 million (2000) to 4.9 million (2022), with a 51% reduction.

• Under-five mortality rate fell to 37 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022 (14% decline from 2015).

• Global neonatal mortality rate decreased to 17 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022, a 44% decline from 2000 and 12% from 2015.

Target 3.3: Ending Epidemics of Communicable Diseases

• HIV: 1.3 million new infections in 2022, 27% fewer than in 2015.

• TB: 7.5 million new diagnoses in 2022, highest since 1995; TB deaths decreased in 2022 after COVID-19 impact.

• Malaria: 249 million cases globally in 2022, exceeding 2019 pre-pandemic levels.

• Neglected Tropical Diseases: 1.62 billion people required care in 2022, a 26.1% decrease from 2010; 50 countries eliminated at least one NTD by 2023.

Target 3.5: Substance Abuse

• Global drug treatment coverage decreased from 11% in 2015 to under 9% in 2022.

• Treatment coverage for men with drug use disorders was over 13%, compared to under 6% for women.

• Alcohol treatment coverage ranged from 0.3% to 14% in reporting countries.

Target 3.7: Family Planning and Reproductive Health

• Women of reproductive age using modern family planning methods increased from 76.5% (2015) to 77.6% (2024), adding 75 million women.

• Adolescent birth rate dropped from 47.2 per 1,000 girls (2015) to 40.7 (2024).

Target 3.8: Universal Health Coverage

• The proportion of the population not covered by essential health services decreased by 15% from 2000 to 2021.

• In 2021, about 4.5 billion people were not covered by essential health services.

Target 3.a: Tobacco Use

• Global tobacco use prevalence was 20.9% in 2022, down from 23.9% in 2015.

• The number of tobacco users decreased by 50 million, totaling 1.25 billion adult users.

Target 3.b: Vaccine Coverage

• DTP-3 vaccine coverage reached 84% in 2022, recovering from 81% in 2021 but still lower than 2019's 86%.

• 20.5 million children remained vulnerable to vaccine-preventable diseases.

• Measles vaccine coverage was 74%, insufficient to prevent outbreaks.

• HPV vaccine coverage showed signs of recovery in 2022, reaching 15% among girls.

Target 3.c: Health Workforce

• The global shortage of health workers by 2030 was reduced from 18 million to 10 million.

• An additional 1.8 million health workers are needed in 54 countries (mostly high-income countries) to maintain current workforce density.