Why there is new hope for the care of chronic diseases in Africa

Inequity has always been one of the biggest health concerns in African countries. For decades, we’ve witnessed the tragedy of African people in low income countries dying of severe, chronic non-communicable diseases because they can’t access the care readily available in higher income countries. Fortunately, thanks to a promising new strategy called PEN-Plus, we are on the brink of a change that could save hundreds of thousands of lives—but only if African countries and the world rise to the occasion.There have been breakthroughs and victories in healthcare and equity on the continent. Increasing access to prevention of malaria in pregnancy, antiretroviral drugs for HIV, and yellow fever vaccinations come to mind.1 In each case, several factors combined to tip the scales towards universal health coverage, including an innovative strategy for delivering care, the political will to scale that strategy, a strong social movement that demands action, and the resulting global…
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