Morocco’s policy choices to achieve Universal health coverage

Abstract

Morocco's health system remains weak in spite of the improvement of other development indicators in the last ten years. Health remains one of the major challenges to lower the social disparities that are the priority for the authorities. Despite the goodwill of all stakeholders, significant reforms implemented respond only partially to the needs of the population. Morocco established several public insurance schemes, of which one focuses on the poorest, to achieve financial-risk protection for its population. Nevertheless, achieving universal health coverage through one of its dimensions is not sufficient, and all the effort being concentrated in one area has shown the deterioration of equity in access to and quality of health services. Moreover, the insurance schemes did not reach their objectives of protecting a majority of Moroccans from financial hardship.