WHO calls on all countries to fight poverty, social inequalities

The World Health Organization (WHO) Friday called on all countries to fight poverty and social inequalities at the end of a meeting in Brazil. In the "Conference about the Social Determinants of Health" held here, the WHO also urged the governments to keep universal sanitation and fight social inequalities despite the economic crisis. The final document concluded that "access to health is a shared responsibility and it needs efforts of the government, the society and international organizations." Brazilian Health Minister Alexandre Padilha said the unanimous final declaration supported the idea that governments should develop policies which could someday help end social inequalities. The financial crisis was a constant issue during the debate and the majority of attendants said the economic situation shouldn't be an excuse to avoid investing more in social policies, let alone to cut health budgets.