Health inequality in Latin America

Abstract

Those visiting Latin America are usually hit by the striking differences between the visible living conditions of rich and poor people. In confirmation of this observation, indicators of income inequity show that Latin America is the world's region with the highest inequity in goods distribution. In the 23 Latin American countries with available information, the Gini coefficients (a measure of income inequality in which a value of 0 is perfect equality, and 1 is inequality) show a median value of 0·53, which compares with scores in developed, African, and Asian countries of 0·32, 0·43 and 0·30, respectively. 1 United Nations Development ProgrammeHuman development report 2006. Beyond scarcity: power, poverty and the global water crisis. http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/hdr06-complete.pdfDate: 2006 Google Scholar The effect on maternal and child health outcomes and health-care provision is striking, regardless of the indicator used to measure inequity. For example, maternal mortality ratios are 10–44 times higher in the poorest provinces of several countries in Latin America. 2 Ministerio de Salud y Medio Ambiente, ArgentinaPrograma materno infantil: Estadísticas vitales. http://www.deis.gov.arDate: 2005 Google Scholar , 3 Ministerio de Salud, PerúSituación de salud en el Perú: indicadores básicos. http://www.paho.org/spanish/sha/prflper.htmDate: 1999 Google Scholar , 4 Ministerio de Salud Pública y Bienestar Social, ParaguayIndicadores básicos de salud. http://www.paho.org/English/DD/AIS/cp_600.htmDate: 2002 Google Scholar , 5 Ministerio de Salud Pública y Bienestar Social, EcuadorIndicadores básicos de salud. http://www.paho.org/English/DD/AIS/cp_218.htmDate: 2002 Google Scholar , 6 Ministerio de Salud Pública y Bienestar Social, NicaraguaIndicadores básicos de salud. http://www.paho.org/English/DD/AIS/cp_558.htmDate: 2002 Google Scholar The poorest quintile of the population showed 3–10 times the prevalence of stunted children than the richest quintile in nine countries (figure). 7 World BankData & statistics: country data, by income quintile. http://go.worldbank.org/9NF74C70J0 Google Scholar Progress and inequity in Latin AmericaThis week's Lancet focuses on health and research in Latin America. The region is undergoing rapid transition, becoming more developed, more urban, and, slowly, better off. Its health problems, too, are undergoing change, most notably the shift in the burden of disease from infectious diseases to the non-communicable diseases of “affluence”, diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and stroke. Full-Text PDF