Description: Panel session discussion of how universal access, quality of care, and controlling health care costs are being addressed in Latin American countries.

Description: In the last 10 to 15 years, new health insurance programs have proliferated in the Latin American and Caribbean regions. The reason for this boom has been, basically, the need for insurance companies to identify and implement new or additional lines of insurance business in order to match or exceed the increased numbers of competitors now working in these markets. This is combined with the stronger reinsurance capacity that these insurance companies had access to, which can be attributed to the need for increased reinsurance protection that arose a number of years ago, when many insurance and reinsurance companies were seeking larger volumes of businesses based on the expected growth potential of the region.