A new report from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), titled Major storm on the horizon , warns that between 2020 and 2050, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and mental health issues will result in economic losses in South America equivalent to the entire annual GDP of Latin America and the Caribbean. This loss is attributed to healthcare spending and productivity decline.

The report was produced in collaboration with Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.

This report serves as a wake-up call and a call to action, said Jarbas Barbosa, PAHO’s director and a public health expert, during a press briefing . “The economic impact of NCDs [and mental health problems] is unacceptable because of the harm it causes to families, communities, and society. But

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