LEARNING FROM THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON PROTECTING THE RIGHT TO HEALTH FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic and the measures used to contain it, such as lockdowns and restrictions on social isolation have severely affected people's livelihoods. The pandemic has put considerable pressure on the health system, equitable access to health services, especially for people with disabilities. These often experience worse health outcomes than people without disabilities due to many barriers to accessing healthcare. These inequalities have been particularly exposed during the pandemic, demonstrating the urgent need to strengthen health systems to be inclusive and responsive to the needs of people with disabilities including during the pandemic. Even in non-crisis contexts, people with disabilities face inaccessible services, lack of proper transportation to and from healthcare facilities, high spending, and stigma and discrimination from health workers. Therefore, it is important to ensure protection measures to Persons with disabilities for care services given their unique characteristics, in particular, to adapt to the current new normal. Methods: This paper uses literature review methods to explore the impact of COVID-19 on the right to health for people with disabilities. Result and Discussion: This review highlights the detrimental effects of social isolation and examines possible alternatives to mitigate the negative effects of the pandemic. Conclusions: This paper concludes that the loss of essential services affected by COVID-19 restrictions requires further adjustments in terms of inclusive policy frameworks, evaluation and monitoring, and broader creativity in implementing the protection of the right to health. Keywords: Persons with disabilities, COVID-19 pandemic, Right to health, Social isolation