Uzbekistan has embarked on a comprehensive health financing reform to ensure equal access to health care, financial protection and equitable distribution of resources. The latest activity in support of the reform was a policy dialogue which brought together over 100 participants including high-level decision-makers from the government, nongovernmental organizations and international partners, held on 25–26 April 2019, in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. At the event, co-hosted by the Ministry of Health and WHO, the ministry presented its initial work on the strategic directions of the health financing strategy as well as the next steps to finalize the strategy. This policy dialogue was a significant step as it provided a unique opportunity to ensure that Uzbekistan makes evidence-informed choices by learning from international experiences. Health specialists from WHO and the World Bank, and other international experts shared international good practices on health financing reform and effective policy instruments to inspire action and help Uzbekistan overcome its current challenges in health financing, such as high out-of-pocket payments, access barriers, and quality and efficiency problems.
