Effect of corruption on perceived difficulties in healthcare access in sub-Saharan Africa.

We found that bribery in healthcare is a significant barrier to healthcare access, negatively affecting the potential of African countries to make progress toward UHC. Future increases in health expenditures-which are needed in many countries to achieve UHC-should be accompanied by greater efforts to fight corruption in order to avoid wasting money. Measuring and tracking health sector-specific corruption is critical for progress toward UHC.