GEOGRAPHICAL INEQUALITIES IN MORTALITY IN LATIN-AMERICA

This paper is an attempt to synthesize several models of health and le vels of affluence in Latin America. An analysis is accomplished wherei n various countries and regions of Latin America are classified for he alth purposes as either products of a poverty model or a wealth model. Variables utilized include: mortality rates in preschool children and infants; elderly mortality; life expectancy; and overall causes of de ath. All three of the general models can be found in different parts o f Latin America. More developed countries and regions tend to approxim ate the wealth model where chronic and degenerative diseases dominate. Still, while life expectations are shorter in countries and regions w ith lower levels of development, some elderly are afflicted by chronic and degenerative diseases.