Report on medical oxygen finds a 70 percent coverage gap and calls for action to end suffering and death
New report by The Lancet Global Health Commission on Medical Oxygen Security spotlights critical medical oxygen gaps and proposes recommendations to strengthen health systems toward universal oxygen access.
PATH applauds the groundbreaking launch of The Lancet Global Health Commission on Medical Oxygen Security’s report Reducing global inequities in medical oxygen access. The report highlights critical gaps in access to medical oxygen—less than 30 percent of people in low- and middle-income countries who need oxygen for acute or surgical conditions receive it. This wide gap in coverage is contributing to hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths each year and reducing quality of life for millions more.
Launched in 2022, The Commission is co-chaired by Makerere University Uganda, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research (icddr,b) Bangladesh; the University of Melbourne, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute Australia; the Karolinska Institutet Sweden; and the Every Breath Counts coalition. According to the coalition, 18 commissioners oversaw the Commission—academic experts representing all regions—and 40 advisors provided guidance, supported by a global network of oxygen access collaborators. The Commission also gathered special testimonials from patients, caregivers, and clinicians and conducted consultations with industry and other experts.
Medical oxygen is essential for the treatment of hypoxemia across many diseases and medical conditions and for many surgeries throughout the life course. Yet, reliable access has been a long-neglected element of health systems planning. The COVID-19 pandemic brought to light the complex intersections to sustain oxygen access across financing, health system and device infrastructure, operations and maintenance, clinical training, data systems, policy design, and advocacy.
“As the Commission reveals, less than one in three people living in low- and middle-income countries are able to receive oxygen when it’s needed for acute medical or surgical conditions,” said Nikolaj Gilbert, PATH President and CEO. “Continued investments and partnerships to optimize sustainable solutions for oxygen coverage are vital to continue progress and move us closer to filling these unacceptable gaps.”
This Commission provides critical evidence on the size of medical oxygen coverage gaps across regions and globally, as well as the cost—US$6.8 billion annually or $34 billion between 2025 and 2030—to close them. The report also highlights that oxygen is a highly cost-effective investment for global donors and governments as it not only averts $59 per disability-adjusted life year but also helps accelerate progress on health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and strengthens pandemic preparedness and response.
“The report makes the case for medical oxygen as a pathfinder investment for a new era,” said Lisa Smith, Global Program Leader for PATH’s Market Dynamics and one of the Commission’s advisors. “As we work to advance progress for universal health coverage and other targets for SDGs, putting strong national medical oxygen systems at the forefront of global health will be a critical piece of the puzzle.”
To accelerate efforts to close the extensive access gaps, the Commission makes 52 specific recommendations for how governments, industry, global health agencies, academic institutions, and civil society can work together to strengthen health systems to guarantee medical oxygen access for all and be ready when the next public health emergency strikes. The Commission also spotlights new tools to scale up oxygen, including an Access to Medical Oxygen Scorecard (ATMO₂S), 10 oxygen coverage indicators, and 20 priority areas for oxygen innovation.
PATH applauds the launch of this new report and urges donors, governments, advocates, and other stakeholders to ensure continued focus on oxygen access as part of securing strong and sustainable health systems. With national medical oxygen plans at the heart of the effort, governments firmly in the driver’s seat, and donor investments well aligned with national plans, health systems can be strengthened in ways that advance many health goals simultaneously.