Non-communicable Chronic Diseases in the Americas: An Economic Perspective on Health Policie

Non-communicable chronic diseases (NCDs) are amongst the principal burdens of disease in both developed and underdeveloped countries. The main causes of these illnesses are well known. They are tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and the harmful use of alcohol. The prevalence of these risk factors is directly related to the activities of transnational corporations. To begin with, just the budgets dedicated to advertising for risky consumption is larger than the budget of the World Health Organization. NCDs have many complex links with the economy whose study is almost completely absent for the Americas. They have important economic microeconomic and macroeconomic impacts and affect economic performance in the long-term. Yet the detailed evaluation of their economic impact, which is essential for establishing the importance of alternative policies, has only just begun in some regions of the world and is almost completely absent for the Americas. The sheer burden on the working and aged population implies that strong impacts on labor, saving and investment, as well as an increased human capital depreciation can be expected. These will all impact long-term economic growth. It is a research priority to quantify these impacts. However, in the context of globalization many changes are occurring at a very fast pace, often faster than their rigorous analysis. It is urgent to develop a global institutional framework capable of promoting the control of NCD risk factors, as well as health and economic growth in general. For example, developing legal mechanisms to slow the negative impact of the deficient nutrition transition could be a step in that direction. In the context of globalization, an international institutional framework is urgently needed to balance markets with governance, to hold TNCs responsible for their impact, and to tax them so they carry their fair share of social weight.