Nine-member governing body endorses a strategy to advance universal health coverage, which will be submitted for approval by PAHO's 53rd Directing Council in September
Washington, D.C., 20 June 2014 (PAHO/WHO) — The Executive Committee of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) concluded its 154th session on 20 June with the approval of a number of strategies and plans to improve health in the Americas, including a strategy to advance toward universal health coverage.
Resolutions approved by the nine-member Executive Committee will be submitted for approval by the 53rd PAHO Directing Council, which meets from 29 September to 3 October this year.
The Committee approved strategies and plans to:
- Advance toward universal health coverage in the Americas
- Ensure universal access to safe blood
- Address disabilities and rehabilitation
- Improve mental health
- Prevent childhood and adolescent obesity
- Incorporate health into all policies
- Prevent blindness and visual impairment
- Coordinate humanitarian assistance in emergencies
In a closing session, PAHO Director Carissa F. Etienne praised the Executive Committee for its commitment and hard work.
Currently Brazil, represented by Secretary of Health Surveillance Jarbas Barbosa, presides over the PAHO Executive Committee. Other members are Bahamas, Chile, Canada, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Jamaica and Paraguay.
Other participants in last week's meeting included Minister of Health of Jamaica Fenton Ferguson, whose country holds the presidency of the Subcommittee on Program, Budget and Administration; Minister of Health of Costa Rica María Elena López; and Minister of Public Health of Ecuador Carina Vance.
The Executive Committee functions as a working group of the Pan American Sanitary Conference and the Directing Council, PAHO's two main governing bodies. The Executive Committee is made up of nine Member States elected by the Pan American Sanitary Conference or the Directing Council, each of which serves for three years. The Committee meets twice a year and upon special request by at least three Member States or by PAHO's Director.
PAHO, founded in 1902, is the oldest international public health organization in the world. It works with its member countries to improve the health and the quality of life of the people of the Americas. It serves as the Regional Office for the Americas of WHO and is part of the inter-American system.
