Spending on primary healthcare in two government administrations in Chile since the dictatorship

Abstract

Since the Declaration of Alma-Ata in 1978, primary healthcare (PHC) is considered an essential component of health systems. In the Chilean case, management of primary care was municipalized during the dictatorship and maintained by the subsequent governments, with some reforms. The aim of this article was to estimate and analyze spending in PHC in Chile, during the governments of Sebastián Piñera and Michelle Bachelet. Collection of financial data was oriented by the model of National Health Accounts (CNS), and later the amounts were deflated according to the Consumer Price Index. The principal source of information was the National System of Municipal Information (SINIM). The results show that during the period there was a permanent increase in spending in PHC; however, the average percent change was slightly higher in the first government compared to the second. The percentage of spending in PHC in relation to public spending in health was 21.4% for the eight years, with few variations. Indicators show that inequalities between administrative and health regions are increasing steadily. Therefore, although transfers to fund primary care services are increasing, they may be poorly distributed. This and other problems like the commodification of services and dismantlement of the network compromise the consolidation of PHC, especially in a health system based on contributive insurance like the Chilean system.