PAHO: New governance model needed for covid19

The Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO) and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) will be working together to shape a new governance model that caters to economic growth and social protection in the wake of the covid19 virus. Resilient health systems and universal health coverage were viewed as key elements of the new model.

PAHO director Dr Carissa F Etienne said the pandemic has forced the region to address three emergencies simultaneously: health, social and economic. She said a joint approach was needed to successfully contain the virus.

“Countries must support their economies while building strong social protection networks and embracing evidence-based public health measures that are essential to saving lives.”

She noted that increases in unemployment had pushed millions of families into poverty. She said financial resources were needed to help people cope with the economic impacts of staying at home or being out of work. This is vital to keeping the virus in check and reducing the duration of the virus in each country.

“Heads of State and Ministers of Health and Finance all face the same dilemma: how to keep their people safe while also protecting the livelihoods of families and communities. It’s a difficult balance to strike but not an impossible one.”

Etienne said she was deeply concerned with how rapidly the covid19 virus was spreading in the region of the Americas.

As of Monday, 1.74 million cases had been reported with over 104,000 deaths.

Etienne noted it took three months for the region to reach one million cases but less than three weeks to almost double the number. There was a relative 18 per cent increase in cases and a 23 per cent relative increase in deaths, compared to the previous week.

Between May 4 and May 11, more than 96,000 additional cases including 5,552 deaths were reported in South America. That represents a 45 per cent relative increase in cases and a 51 per cent relative increase in deaths, compared to the previous week.