Inequalities in access to healthcare in Morocco: Issues and perspectives

This article examines different types of inequalities in access to health care in Morocco, including geographic, socio-economic and institutional factors. While Morocco has made progress towards reforming health care access through RAMED and AMO, inequalities still exist between urban and rural areas, between cities in already developed areas and cities in isolated regions, and among different social classes. The causes of these inequalities are rooted in the unequal distribution of health care providers (physicians located almost exclusively in cities), the inadequate or non-existent health care infrastructure in rural areas, economic barriers (the high cost of health care and the burden of paying for it directly), inadequate governance (the extreme concentration of power and the lack of effective coordination), and sociocultural factors (high rates of illiteracy and the unequal position of women). The authors of this article propose various reforms aimed at achieving a more equitable health care system, including decentralization, strengthening primary health care, and improving access to health care.