Latin America and the Caribbean has been the region most affected by COVID-19, and universalizing health is a necessity to achieve sustainable development. Although the region presented a positive economic recovery in 2021, the estimated figures for poverty and extreme poverty remained above those recorded in 2019.
The pandemic generated an important debate around the public social services that States should guarantee. ECLAC assures that social protection should not only be reactive, preventive and adaptive, but anticipatory.