Washington, DC, 21 November 2024 (PAHO)- The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), together with the Ministry of Health of Brazil, will host the 2024 Regional Health Accounts Meeting, scheduled to take place from December 4 to 6 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This event will convene experts, public health officials, and sector representatives from various countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, with the goal of enhancing institutional capacities for measuring and applying Health Accounts (HA) to boost spending efficiency and drive the transformation of health systems, with a particular focus on Primary Health Care (PHC).
Health Accounts are a crucial tool for the health authority's stewardship, providing essential information to track health expenditures and understand their structure. This data is fundamental for formulating policies that contribute to achieving universal health and reinforcing Essential Public Health Functions (EPHF).
Despite progress in the region, challenges persist in linking health spending to improved outcomes and alleviating the financial burden on households. Although out-of-pocket spending has slightly declined, the percentage of individuals pushed below the poverty line due to health expenses remains a pressing issue. In this context, the meeting aims to strengthen the capacity to institutionalize the production of Health Accounts and ensure their effective use in policy-making to promote public health.
Throughout the three-day event, experts and authorities will focus on key areas, including the use of Health Accounts information to guide efficient resource allocation in resilient health systems, smart health spending, pharmaceutical spending measurement, and approaches to analyzing out-of-pocket spending. Additionally, discussions will cover spending measurement by disease and new methodologies to measure catastrophic and impoverishing spending, aiming to reduce households' financial vulnerability and advance compliance with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Participants will include experts, authorities, and representatives from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
The conclusions of this meeting are expected to be consolidated into work proposals for 2025, with the aim of advancing the institutionalization and effective use of spending statistics generated from Health Accounts across the region.
