Countries pledge efforts to reduce healthcare gap

Representatives from 120 countries attending the WHO's World Conference on Social Determinants of Health on Friday pledged to maintain investments in healthcare to reduce social gap. A statement adopted at the conference urged governments to maintain international collaboration and promote equal access to healthcare regardless of wealth. Brazilian Health Minister Alexandre Padilha said the economic woes in many countries cannot be a reason to "diminish" their social policies. "The crisis cannot be an obstacle, instead it must be an opportunity to consolidate social policies," he said. Brazilian Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota said at the conference that health was an issue related to sustainable development, which will be discussed at the UN's Rio +20 Conference in 2012. "The conference that ended today is an important step toward Rio +20," he said.