Universal coverage and economic burden from epidemiological changes of diabetes in Latin America

Despite the increased coverage schemes of universal health insurance, unresolved challenges still remain in the current health care model. The expected epidemiological changes for chronic diseases in Latin American countries (LACs), will lead, in economic terms, to catastrophic expenditures for the health systems (more than 10% of the health budget) and for patients (more than 30% of the household income). Moreover, the governments, institutions and societies of these countries will have to face strong competition in the allocation of resources to universal coverage for other diseases [1].