Social participation, universal health coverage and health security

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic response is a good example of the growing chasm between people and their governments. To fight the pandemic, policy-makers often took top-down decisions with little community input, although these decisions were far reaching and affected people at all levels. Leaders have often used a default mode of governance that is neither inclusive nor particularly diverse, highlighting the shortcomings of how health systems have traditionally been steered.