Missing Billion Initiative

📢 Introducing MBI’s Advisory Board We are delighted to introduce our newly formed Advisory Board – a powerhouse of global leaders driving the movement for disability-inclusive health. MBI’s co-founders Phyllis Heydt, Hannah Kuper and Mari Tikkanen are joined by three exceptional new advisors: 🔹 Satendra Singh, MD – A disability justice advocate and Director-Professor at the University College of Medical Sciences & GTB Hospital in Delhi, Satendra has led policy reforms integrating disability competencies into India’s national medical curriculum. He is Co-chair of International Council for Disability Inclusion in Medical Education, Commissioner at the Lancet Commission on Disability and Health & member of core group on disability at the National Human Rights Commission, India. 🔹 Prof. Dr. Jill Hanass-Hancock – A leading researcher in sexual and reproductive health and rights for people with disabilities. Jill’s research has advanced understanding of the vulnerability of women with disabilities to HIV and violence, the link between HIV and disability, and the cost of disability. Her work has shaped policies and interventions, such as the Breaking the Silence curriculum—recognized by UNESCO for making comprehensive sexuality education accessible. She currently leads the Disability Data Initiative Sub-Saharan Africa, driving innovation in disability rights monitoring. 🔹 Ying (Sunny) Sun – a partner of McKinsey & Company’s public health practice. Sunny works globally with health system leaders, funders, and innovators to improve health equity, especially for vulnerable populations and communities. She leads Digital and Analytics within McKinsey’s Public Health Practice and has a long-standing passion for digital health innovations as a tool for closing the health equity gap. She co-led the partnership between the Missing Billion Initiative and McKinsey Health Institute on disability inclusive health and co-authored two reports on inclusive health data and inclusive care pathways. We are honored to have their leadership and expertise as we work towards transforming health systems to better serve people with disabilities.

⭐ Time to act: Achieving health equity for women with disabilities Globally, women with disabilities experience a significant 10 to 20-year gap in life expectancy due to health inequities. While many barriers to healthcare access are known, sex-disaggregated data on these gaps, the resulting health disparities, and meaningful high-level action remains limited. We are excited to share that we are co-hosting a networking event focused on the health of women with disabilities together with Women Enabled International Disability Rights Fund and World Health Summit, on the sidelines of the Global Disability Summit. Join us to connect with partners working on #disability inclusion, #GlobalHealth, and #GenderEquality. This event will highlight a new report on the health of women with disabilities and provide space for open discussions and networking. 📅 Wednesday April 2, 2025 ⏰ 7:00 – 8:30 PM 📍 Aletto Hotel, Luckenwalder Str. 12-14, Berlin ➡️ Register here: https://bit.ly/3XxnTT5 #HealthEquity #WomenWithDisabilities

Don’t miss this critical conversation! Join us for this webinar in partnership with the Missing Billion Initiative on March 21 at 12:30 UTC. Let’s break down barriers, advocate for inclusive policies, and push for real change in Beijing +30 and Universal Health Coverage. Register here: https://bit.ly/3EZILMt #NGOCSW69 #Beijing30 #WomenInLeadership #GlobalHealth #DisabilityRights

💜 Today, on International Women’s Day, we celebrate the strength and contributions of women, especially women with disabilities who often face greater barriers. We must also acknowledge the disparities that persist in healthcare access for women with disabilities. These disparities reflect a deeper need for inclusive policies, training for healthcare providers, and overall transformation of health systems. 📽️ Our team reminds us of a few facts in this short video! Health is a fundamental human right. A truly equitable future means ensuring that all women have access to quality healthcare. Today, let’s not only celebrate but commit to action – advocating for healthcare systems that recognize and serve the needs of all women! #InternationalWomensDay #HealthEquity #Disability

What does maternity care look like for women with disabilities in the UK? Our new report with London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, U. of London provides key data on the disparities that exist between women with and without disabilities. Channel 4 and The Guardian are talking about it and published powerful interviews highlighting several women's experience: 💬 “Medical staff often seemed uncomfortable or unsure how to adapt standard procedures for my needs. I had to repeatedly explain my disability and push for appropriate accommodations.” – Carly Tait (former Paralympian) 💬 “Initially, doctors asked me to advise them on what they should do during birth… I told them you’re the experts, not me.” – Rupy Kaur Roberts 💬 “It’s always been a fight-fighting for access, support and care. I was encouraged to get an abortion for all four of my pregnancies because of my disability.” – Rameeza Mehmud ➡️ Watch the short Channel 4 News documentary here: https://lnkd.in/e-4U-Kh5 ➡️ Read The Guardian article: https://lnkd.in/ezPCuBGw ➡️ Read our report: https://lnkd.in/eh9te2H6

📊 New report shows women with disabilities in the UK are being left behind in maternity care Today in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, U. of London, we are launching a report that exposes shocking disparities in maternity care access, experiences, and outcomes for disabled women. What did co-authors Hannah Kuper and Danae Rodríguez Gatta find? 🔸 44% higher odds of stillbirth or neonatal mortality 🔸 Higher likelihood of caesarean delivery 🔸 Lower breastfeeding rates 🔸 A healthcare system that is largely unprepared to meet the needs of disabled women And yet, despite these inequities, disability remains an afterthought in UK maternity care policies and guidance. This must change! Our report calls for: 🔹 A UK committee—inclusive of disabled women—to assess and improve maternity services 🔹 Stronger policy guidance to integrate disability into maternity care 🔹 Better training for healthcare providers on disability-inclusive care 🔹 Increased research funding to close the data gaps   This is not just a healthcare issue – it’s a human rights issue. As we prepare to celebrate #InternationalWomensDay this Saturday, we must emphasize every woman’s right to safe, respectful, and high-quality maternity care. 📖 Read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/eh9te2H6 #Disability #HealthEquity #MaternalHealth #IWD2025

What we learned from Community Health workers…   🔎 Last week, we had the privilege of joining the Community Health Impact Coalition Activate call alongside community health workers (#CHWs) from around the world. We had the opportunity to share findings from our CHW training on disability inclusion with Lwala Community Alliance and learned about the impacts of recent global shocks on CHW's and their communities. We had a few takeaways ⬇️   ✅ CHWs have their ears to the ground when it comes to impacts of major changes in funding and healthcare provision—they are experts that we can and must learn from ✅ Despite global challenges, CHWs remain deeply committed to supporting their communities now more than ever   A highlight of the discussion was hearing directly from Millicent Miruka, one of the fabulous CHW trained through our pilot with Lwala, who shared her insights on the impact of this training ⬇️ ✅ The training equipped her with both hard skills and knowledge as well as a personal impact due to the unique duo training model that included a person with disability ✅ The training opened a dialogue between herself and the people with disability she serves, and now feels more comfortable asking her clients how she can provide them the best care possible advocate for her clients ✅ Success is strong relationships with clients - this training enables this!   The dedication of CHWs continues to inspire us, and we are grateful for the chance to engage, learn, and grow together. Let’s keep amplifying their voices and advocating for the resources they need to sustain their invaluable work! #CommunityHealth #DisabilityInclusion #HealthForAll #CHIC #Lwala #GlobalHealth

🚨 New report alert! Our latest publication “Investing in health justice: Increasing visibility of funding dedicated to making health systems inclusive for people with disabilities”, published with the support of Clinton Health Access Initiative, Inc. and Special Olympics, is a novel report on funding dedicated to making health systems inclusive for people with disabilities. This report analyses the state of disability-relevant health funding, revealing the huge opportunity for all donor types (government, multilateral, private philanthropic foundations) to increase and improve financing, and strengthen disability data tracking. As of today, only a meager 0.4% of all Development Financing for Health is disability-inclusive according to the report analysis. We discuss in detail this persistent underfunding of disability-inclusive health and offer actionable guidance to help funders drive change by investing in disability-inclusive health. With a global narrative shift around Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (#DEI) and as we mark #WorldDayofSocialJustice, we call on funders to reflect on the crucial necessity to take action towards making health inclusive for all. Universal Health Coverage will only be achieved by building health systems that include people with disabilities. ➡️ Read the whole report here: https://lnkd.in/efZswN4n #Disability #InclusiveHealth #HealthFinancing

💻 💬 Upcoming webinar Our new report on health and disability financing will be published this Thursday, on World Day for Social Justice. Join Frederic Seghers and Vinson Lee as they discuss the key findings of the report “Investing in health justice: Increasing visibility of funding dedicated to making health systems inclusive for people with disabilities”. 🗓️ Thursday February 20th ⏰ 2:00 - 3:00pm CET ➡️ Register here: https://lnkd.in/d4DPpAW6 #DEI #Disability #InclusiveHealth #HealthFinancing

🔎 𝐌𝐁𝐈 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬: 𝐔𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚 What if the solutions to the challenges persons with disabilities face lay within the communities themselves? In #Uganda with MRC/UVRI & LSHTM Uganda Research Unit and Amref Health Africa in Uganda, Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH) and Women and Children First we are piloting participatory learning and action groups to improve healthcare access for people with disabilities. In Luuka District, these groups are locally known as “Tusobola” (“We Can”). They bring people with disabilities together to: - identify key healthcare challenges - develop and implement action plans - engage the wider community to drive change. Alongside these community groups, health system strengthening activities are co-developed and co-led with people with disabilities, such as healthcare worker training and health facility audits. 🔗 Read the project overview on our website: https://lnkd.in/eYz7tYYC #Disability #CommunityHealth #GlobalHealth