PHM-Exch> Effect of a conditional cash transfer programme on childhood mortality: Brazil

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: Ruggiero, Mrs. Ana Lucia (WDC) <ruglucia at paho.org>
crosposted from : EQUIDAD at listserv.paho.org


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*Effect of a conditional cash transfer programme on childhood mortality:
a nationwide analysis of Brazilian municipalities

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Davide Rasella PhD a, Rosana Aquino MD a, Carlos AT Santos PhD a b, Rômulo
Paes-Sousa MD c, Prof Mauricio L Barreto MD a d

 *The Lancet, Early Online Publication, 15 May 2013*

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Website: http://bit.ly/16A21rX

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In the past 15 years, ****Brazil**** has undergone notable social and
public health changes, including a large reduction in child mortality.
The Bolsa Familia Programme (BFP) is a widespread conditional cash transfer
programme, launched in 2003, which transfers cash to poor households
(maximum income US$70 per person a month) when they comply with conditions
related to health and education.
Transfers range from $18 to $175 per month, depending on the income and
composition of the family. We aimed to assess the effect of the BFP on
deaths of children younger than 5 years (under-5), overall and resulting
from specific causes associated with poverty: malnutrition, diarrhoea, and
lower respiratory infections.

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Methods****

The study  covered the period from 2004—09 and included 2853 (of 5565)
municipalities with death and livebirth statistics of adequate quality.

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Findings****

Under-5 mortality rate, overall and resulting from poverty-related causes,
decreased as BFP coverage increased.  The effect of consolidated BFP
coverage was highest on under-5 mortality resulting from malnutrition  and
diarrhoea.

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Interpretation
A conditional cash transfer programme can greatly contribute to a decrease
in childhood mortality overall, and in particular for deaths attributable
to poverty-related causes such as malnutrition and diarrhoea, in a large
middle-income country such as ****Brazil****.
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*“……The results of our study provide evidence that a multisectoral approach,
combining a large-scale conditional cash transfer programme, with the
potential to act on important social health determinants, and effective
primary health care, capable of attending basic health demands of the same
population and of attending conditions imposed by the conditional cash
transfer programme, can substantially reduce childhood mortality from
poverty-related causes in a large middle-income country such as
Brazil…………….”*

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