The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #74331

Ellen R Shaffer, PhD, MPH¹, Howard Waitzkin, MD, PhD², Celia Iriart, PhD³, Rebeca Jasso-Aguilar, MPH², and Joseph E Brenner, MA¹. (1) Center for Policy Analysis, 98 Seal Rock Drive, San Francisco, CA 94121, 415-933-6204, ershaffer@earthlink.net, (2) Masters in Public Health Program, University of New Mexico, 2400 Tucker N.E., School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM 87131, (3) Division of Community Medicine, The University of New Mexico, School of Medicine, 2400 Tucker N.E, Albuquerque, NM 87131

International trade agreements such as the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and regional agreements such as the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) could curtail the ability of local, state and national governments to provide and regulate vital human services such as health care, water and sanitation, energy, and education. Rules commonly applied to commodities such as steel and cotton would be used to facilitate trade by private foreign corporations in health care and water. There are serious crises in providing access to these services in both developed and developing nations, and subjecting services to rules of commercial trade may exacerbate threats. Trade negotiations have so far been conducted with little notice or participation by the health and public health communities. An alternative public health approach would suggest the importance of universal access to vital human services, and effective international methods for facilitating and enforcing agreements to provide services. This presentation reviews the basics of relevant agreements, the status of the negotiations, and the prospect for an alternative public health agenda for providing universal access to health care and water. It will also present the expected agenda for the FTAA ministerial meeting scheduled to take place in Miami in late November, 2003.

Learning Objectives:

• Participants will be able to discuss:
• The provisions of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) that encourage deregulation and privatization of health care, water and other vital human services.
• Plans for the FTAA ministerial scheduled for November 19 in Miami.
• The importance of an alternative public health response to creating universal access to vital human services.

Keywords: Public Health Policy, Economic Analysis

Related Web page: www.cpath.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.