Montevideo, Uruguay
Monday 20, Tuesday 21 & Wednesday 22 of August 2018
Convened Participants
Presidents of the Health Committees of the Parliaments of:
Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, United States of America and Venezuela.
Other Convened Participants
CARICOM, COMISCA, Central American Court of Justice, Caribbean Court of Justice, FAO, FOPREL, IOM, IPU, PARLACEN, PARLANDINO, PARLASUR, PARLATINO, Special Olympics, SICA UNICEF and WHO.
Other parliamentary groups will also participate, including: the Regional Parliamentary Front against Tuberculosis, the Parliamentary Group against Hunger, the Interamerican Parliamentary Group, the Hemispheric Network of Parliamentarians and Former Parliamentarians for Early Childhood, and also the Inter-Parliamentary Union, based in Geneva.
Background
In June 2015, at the initiative of the Health and Population Committee of the Congress of the Republic of Peru and with the support of the Pan American Health Organization/ Regional Office of the World Health Organization for the Americas (PAHO / WHO), the first congress of Health Commissions of the Parliaments of the Americas was held, with the vision of generating a space of knowledge, analysis and exchange of permanent experiences on topics of interest in health matters; identify the common critical aspects that affect the quality of life of the population of the continent; and strengthen the capacities of parliamentarians in the preparation and approval of legal frameworks in accordance with public policies that allow the full exercise of the right to health.
Another underlying idea, which was consolidated in Panama, the venue for the second congress held in May 2016, was the promotion of a regional plan for the harmonization of health-related legislation in accordance with international instruments and commitments of the countries, in the path to universal health coverage. Likewise, the proposal for the creation of a Network of Parliamentarians of the Health Commissions was discussed in order to strengthen links of permanent communication and exchange of legislation, plans, strategies and experiences with favorable impact in the solution to problems that affect health.
In November 2017, in Santiago, Chile, in its third exhibition, a call was made to analyze the challenges to health in the 21st century and the need to continue promoting the legislative work of the countries in a methodical and systematic manner with the objective of promoting the effective realization of the right to health, recognizing the great challenges faced by nations given the diversity of determinants for health, particularly risk factors.
Objectives
General Objective
The Congress of Health Committees of the Parliaments of the Americas has the overall objective to generate an international space of knowledge, analysis and permanent exchange of experiences on topics of interest in health; to identify the common critical aspects that affect the quality of life of the population of the Americas; and to strengthen the capacities of parliamentarians in the preparation and approval of legal frameworks in accordance with public policies to promote the full exercise of the right to health for the population of the countries of the American Continent.
Objectives of the IV Congress
- Discuss the most relevant issues of public health and the progress of health legislation in a shared experience at the regional level.
- Present experiences of legislation and regulatory frameworks in critical health issues, based on the best evidence.
- Explore compatibility with regional agreements and international human rights instruments.
- Present experiences of legislation and regulatory frameworks in critical health issues, informed by the best scientific and technical evidence.
- Define the main themes and priorities that allow us to continue moving towards a regional legislative agenda.
- Consolidate the configuration of the Parliamentary Network of Health Commissions of the Americas, its Work Plan for the following years and develop multilateral cooperation agendas.
Methodology
The IV Congress of Health Committees of the Parliaments of the Americas is a fully interactive set of conferences and open discussions to be developed through a thematic agenda, with a moderated discussion among legislators, international organizations and the technical staff of the institutions convened. It is proposed to discuss the most important public health challenges, but, above all, to identify aspects of common problems, good practices and failed exercises, with the aim of harmonizing the legislation in full accordance with the instruments of human rights and international recommendations, with the idea of delineating general conclusions that can later be implemented in domestic legislation in the participating countries.
Downloads
Links
— Declaration of the IV Congress of the Health Committees of the Parliaments of the Americas on Tuberculosis
— OPS/OMS apoyará la realización en Uruguay del IV Congreso de Comisiones de Salud de Parlamento de las Américas
— Photos from the Event
— Parliament of Uruguay
