Loneliness and social isolation have been identified as critical global health issues in the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis. While there is robust scientific evidence demonstrating the impact of loneliness and social isolation on health outcomes and mortality, there are fundamental issues to resolve so that health authorities, decision-makers, and practitioners worldwide are informed and aligned with the latest evidence. This paper argues that three priority actions are needed achieve a wider and more substantial impact on loneliness and social isolation:

1. strengthening the evidence base;
2. adopting a whole-of-systems approach;
3. developing policy support for governments worldwide.

These priority actions are essential to reduce the pervasive impact of loneliness and social isolation as social determinants of health, the authors state.