Public health leaders must directly address systemic power imbalances that severely undermine global health equity. We contend that despite a 2008 call to action, the global health complex has primarily relied on narrow, apolitical, and technocratic solutions that obscure deep-seated inequalities. To remedy this, we propose three essential steps: first, achieving a comprehensive analysis of power asymmetries, including political, financial, and informational power; second, expanding and reforming accountability systems to address gaps in transparency related to financial flows and powerful organizations; and finally, actively supporting concrete policy remedies like ending tax avoidance and enforcing anti-trust laws to mitigate plutocratic and corporate power. Health professionals have a crucial responsibility to contribute to strengthening democracy and social justice at all levels to achieve health security for everyone.
The original article by McCoy, D., Khosla, R. (2024) titled “Public health leaders must confront the power imbalances that harm global health.” published in the Nature Medicine (Vol. 29, pp. 2158–2159). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-023-02446-w.