Substantive Response to the Discussion Question
Inequality in healthcare, unfortunately, means people affected by diseases in developing countries do not have the means to protect themselves. Such instances represent the burden of global diseases and how people with minimal resources succumb to them. The ability to control infections is determined by the ability of a country in terms of resources and preparedness.
Your article Ruben is well researched and informative. I agree with your assessment that its available resources determine the ability of a country to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. You provide a perfect example since the U.S. was able to control the spread of Ebola. The same disease had killed many people in Africa since many countries there lack the skills, workforce, and resources to contain infectious diseases. All in all, I could not agree more with you that new policies need to be formed to help developing countries control the burden of global diseases.
You mentioned a very crucial aspect, which is the importance of delivering health services that are aligned with the 2020 healthy people goals. This can be achieved by improving public health. The Healthy People 2020 goals focus on the reduction of disparities as well as social inequalities. Trade agreements are also vital in the achievement of healthy people 2020 goals since they help redistribute resources to countries that lack them. However, not all trade agreements positively influence health services since some prohibit the entry of vital drugs and needed manpower to handle the spread of the diseases. All in all, relevant stakeholders and governments must work together to control the spread of infectious diseases through equally distributing resources.
In conclusion, poor health services occur due to the lack of required resources. However, healthy 2020 goals dictate that policymakers need to develop and formulate laws that see the equal distribution of resources. More importantly, healthcare workers need to be included in the trade discussions since this helps to address health concerns from their point of view.