Increase the proportion of spending on means-tested programs in the U.S..

In the United States from 1972 to 2012, federal spending for means-tested programs and tax credits grew from 1 percent to almost 4 percent of GDP (see figure). These programs provide cash payments or assistance in obtaining health care, food, housing, or education to people with low incomes or few assets. Complete note here.

Source: Extracted from an article of the Congressional Budget Office. 

"Getting it right": OECD recommendations to Mexico

The document "Getting it Right: A Strategic Agenda for Reforms in Mexico" by the OECD presents specific recommendations to the incoming government to support the design, development and implementation of effective policies and reforms to improve economic performance and standard of living of Mexicans.

Mexico Forum 2013: Public Policies for Inclusive Development.

Tomorrow starts the Mexico Forum 2013: Public Policies for Inclusive Development organized by the IDB, the World Bank, ECLAC and OECD. The Forum will be held on January 9 and 10 at Centro Banamex in Mexico City. On this page you will find all information about the Forum: objective, program, participants, real-time conferences and later the papers.

Quality Management in IMSS

The Mexican Social Security Institute has published the book “Quality Management in the Mexican Institute of Social Security”. It tells the story from the 1990s until today as well as the current policies. It is divided into two major sections: the first summarizes the models, plans and programs that have systematized knowledge, practices and efforts to improve administration, such as the new model of family medicine, and the improvement of childcare and customer service. The second section puts emphasis on systems and instruments to support quality, such as the system of information management with focus on users, and the training of institutional managers through the model of evaluation and strengthening of leadership skills. Members of the CISS interested in obtaining a copy can send an e-mail to secretaria.general@ciss.org.mx.

United States: increasing government benefits (as a share of income)

In the U.S. the share of personal income that comes from government benefit programs (Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, etc.) increased significantly in the last 40 years, from 8% in 1969 to 18% in 2009. This map shows this share for the different states and districts of the country.

France implements measures to stimulate growth

The French government announced some measures to stimulate growth and protect jobs. Raising the rate of VAT to finance labor costs and thus it will be possible to reduce the contributions tax work. For more information see here and here.

More on the major reform to the pension system in Brazil

The minister of the pension system in Brazil called on Wednesday to approve the reform to the public sector pension system in Brazil. He also mentioned the importance of expanding the pension reform around the country, because if not done, future generations will pay a high price. Complete note here.

Discussing changes to the pension scheme in the public sector in Brazil

Brazil's public sector discussed changes to its pension scheme. The government proposes to increase the rate of contribution to public sector pensions. Complete note here.

Spain approved the strategy "55 and Over"

The Spanish government approved the Global Strategy for Employment "55 and Over", which seeks to promote employment among older people, promote the extension of working life, and improve safety and health at work. More information here.

The difficulties of establishing a basic benefits package

In this link we can see how difficult it is to establish basic benefit packages.

In LAC one in five people receive CCT

In Latin America and the Caribbean, one in five people receive conditional cash transfers (CCT). The transfers are intended for poor families with school-age children and pregnant women. The condition is that the children go to school or participate in health screenings, and nutrition. More information here.

World Bank: Gender equality raise productivity

According to the World Development Report 2012: Gender Equality and Development published by the World Bank, create better opportunities and conditions for women and girls can raise productivity, improve outcomes for children, make institutions more representative, and advance development prospects for all.

Social guarantees to design social policies in the Eastern Caribbean

The volume "Building Citizenship Through Social Policy in the Eastern Caribbean: The Role of Social Guarantees" produced by the World Bank and the Organization of American States aims to demonstrate how the social guarantees approach can be applied to social policy design, delivery and monitoting at the country level in the Eastern Caribbean. The volume emphasizes the merits of using the approach of social guarantees in the different countries.

If you are interested in the entire volume leave us your email and we will gladly send it.

Obama's "Job Plan"

Obama challenged Congress to pass his "Job Plan" which aims to revive the U.S. economy through new government spending and tax cuts, including reducing payroll taxes. Complete note here.

Latin America: low growth in social protection

Social Protection in Latin America has not had the significant growth that has taken the economic aspect in the last decade. Advances in pensions have been very marginal. Labor coverage does not exceed 50% in Colombia, Mexico and Peru. At the same time, these three countries observed rates of informality about 70%. Given this, many of the policies in the region are focusing on the enlargement of the coverage. Complete note here.

Democrats vs Republicans

Now approaching the U.S. political debates, here are four points that have been discussed among Republicans and Democrats.
1) The value of competition. The Republican proposal to replace the current fee-for-service program, in which the government picks up the bill for medical expenses, with a “premium-support” system in which seniors use federal dollars to choose among competing private insurance plans.
2) The insurance mandate. Obama's plan to force everyone to have health insurance.
3) Taxing the rich. Democrats want to increase taxes on the rich to fund the looming fiscal gap, which is driven largely by soaring health costs.
4) Blinkered optimism. Democrats and Republicans generally have different approaches to controlling the growth of health care spending.
To learn more about these four points click here.

ILO: Adopt labor standards to protect millions of domestic workers worldwide

The government, worker and employer delegates at the 100th annual Conference of the International Labour Organization (ILO) on Thursday, 16 June adopted a historic set of international standards aimed at improving the working conditions of tens of millions of domestic workers worldwide. Complete note here.

The Medicare trust fund is exhausted.

The Medicare trust fund will run out 5 years earlier than thought. The U.S. government will have to think about making changes to the program in order to combat fiscal deficits. Complete note here.

Overheating Risks in Latin America

New International Monetary Fund Report "Regional Economic Outlook Western Hemisphere: Watching Out for Overheating" warns of overheating risks in Latin America. The region is experiencing an excessively stimulative environment: high commodity prices and easy external financial conditions. The region’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to have expanded by around 6 percent in 2010, and it is projected to grow about 4.75 percent this year, this will require that governments withdraw any policy stimulus on a timely basis. For a summary of the report, see the press release here.

To keep baby boomers healthy and out of poverty – the biggest threat to US finances

1983 was the year in which the United States last made substantial changes to the public pension and healthcare programs. It is estimated that, as baby boomers retire, these programs will cost $1.3 trillion dollars in 2011 and $2.3 trillion dollars in 2021, since healthcare costs are increasing faster than inflation and people live longer. One of the main problems, stated in this article, is the divided opinion of Republicans, that want to cut expenditure, and Democrats that want to increase taxes.