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Hi, it’s Andrea and Oscar in Bogota. Here in Colombia, the health-care system is at risk of a major upheaval. But before we get to that …
Health care is a headache for policymakers around the world. Aging populations, rising pharmaceutical costs and new technologies are creating financial headaches for governments and pushing demand for services from medical professionals beyond capacity the world over.
Colombia, though, is a surprising success story. Its mixed public-private system provides nearly universal coverage. Not only are 97% of its nearly 52 million people able to access care, health expenditures there are below the OECD average. Out-of-pocket spending is among the lowest in the world.
But with leftist President Gustavo Petro looking to blunt the role of private insurers, experts warn that the South American nation’s medical system is now at risk.
Petro — the country’s first leftist leader — has proposed legislation that would make the Colombian government the main manager of the $20-billion-a-year system.
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