Essential medicines

Essential medicines are those that satisfy the priority health-care needs of the population. Essential medicines are selected with due regard to disease prevalence and public health relevance, evidence of clinical efficacy and safety, and comparative costs and cost-effectiveness. Essential medicines are intended to be available within the context of functioning health systems at all times, in adequate amounts, in the appropriate dosage forms, with assured quality, and at a price the individual and the community can afford.

The WHO Model List of Essential Medicines is a guide for the development of national and institutional essential medicine lists. It was not designed as a global standard. However, for the past 30 years the Model List has led to a global acceptance of the concept of essential medicines as a powerful means to promote health equity. The Model List is updated and revised every 2 years by the WHO Expert Committee on Selection and Use of Essential Medicines. Most countries have national lists and some have provincial or state lists as well. National lists of essential medicines usually relate closely to national guidelines for clinical health-care practice, which are used for the training and supervision of health workers.

WHO/Europe provides technical assistance to ministries of health for updating national essential medicines lists.