PAHO Executive Committee discusses new strategies and plans to improve the
health of the Americas.
Washington, DC, June 21, 2016 (PAHO/WHO) – The Executive Committee of the
Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is discussing strategies and plans
to improve the health of the Americas at its 158th session, which runs
through June 24.
The Committee, chaired by the Minister of Public Health of Ecuador,
Margarita Guevara, includes representatives from nine Member States and
guides the topics in technical cooperation that are debated by PAHO’s
Directing Council in September.
The issues being addressed by the Executive Committee include a strategy
for the prevention and control of arboviral diseases; action plans for the
prevention and control of HIV and sexually transmitted infections; the
elimination of neglected tropical diseases, and disaster risk reduction.
They also cover topics such as health systems resilience; access and
rational use of medicines and other strategic health technologies and high
cost; and the health of migrants. Delegates also discussed a report on the
response in the region of the Americas to the Zika virus.
The Director of the Pan American Health Organization, Carissa F. Etienne,
said the region has faced recent public health challenges including floods
and earthquakes. “Even as we grappled with and responded to these natural
disasters, we in the Americas were confronted by the crushing impact of the
newly emerging Zika virus epidemic, which once again tested our
preparedness and responsiveness to an outbreak emergency,” she said.
PAHO “mounted timely and effective responses to all these disasters and the
outbreak, building upon its vast experience in disaster management. We were
able to work with partners to ensure strong support to our affected Member
States,” she added, noting the importance of “an integrated approach to the
prevention of Zika, dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever” in the new
regional Strategy for Arboviral Disease Prevention and Control.”
Etienne also stressed the importance of discussing high-cost medicines,
saying they “are among the major contributors to the ever-increasing health
care costs borne by governments, families and individuals, and these
exorbitant costs can negatively impede progress towards universal
health.”
Ecuador Minister Margarita Guevara thanked the countries of the region and
PAHO for their quick response and support after the earthquake that struck
Ecuador in April.
The Committee’s deliberations will determine the final agenda to be
discussed during the 55th Directing Council of PAHO, which will meet from
26 to 30 September this year.
The Executive Committee functions as a working group of the Pan American
Sanitary Conference and the Directing Council of PAHO. It is composed of
nine Member States elected by the Pan American Sanitary Conference or the
Directing Council of PAHO for overlapping periods of three years. It meets
twice a year. Its members are Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas,
Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Trinidad and Tobago, and the United
States.
