Rethinking NCD and mental health financing for equity and impact

Noncommunicable diseases, or NCDs — such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic respiratory illness, diabetes, and mental health conditions — account for over 70% of global deaths, with more than three-quarters of these occurring in low- and middle-income countries, or LMICs. Yet NCDs remain severely underfunded, receiving only around 1-2% of total health funding — even as the economic toll of NCDs is projected to exceed $47 trillion globally by 2030.

While many LMICs have made meaningful progress in expanding health coverage and integrating NCD care into national strategies, limited fiscal space, competing health priorities, and external shocks — from conflict and economic instability to climate impacts and pandemics — have strained public health budgets and exposed the fragility of these gains. The challenge is not only one of resources but also of structural design: financing mechanisms must be resilient, equitable, and better aligned with long-term health system strengthening.

Today, there is an urgent need for financing approaches that bring together governments, the private sector, donors, multilateral institutions, and civil society to accelerate progress on NCD and mental health prevention and care. The upcoming fourth High-level Meeting of the UN General Assembly on NCDs and Mental Health, or HLM4, offers a key opportunity to mobilize sustainable financing commitments. The resulting Political Declaration is expected to include a focus on an integrated approach toward NCD and mental health care that recognizes the critical role of strong primary health systems in all geographic settings.

Through this event, Devex and its partners — including Boehringer Ingelheim, Access Accelerated, and AstraZeneca, among others —will mark the culmination of the Accelerating Action series, which has been working to build momentum around financing models that work in the NCD and mental health space.