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Mauritius National Health Accounts Report 2017

Mauritius National Health Accounts (NHA) Report 2017

The NHA Report 2017 shows Mauritius in a leading position, with an expenditure of US$ 548 per person on health, among SADC Member States. A high per capita expenditure on health has resulted in remarkable health gains. Life expectancy at birth is, at present, 74.7 years. Infant mortality rate per thousand live births has improved to 12.2 and maternal mortality rate stands at 0.74 per thousand live births. As regards to disease estimates, the report indicates that the country spent an estimated amount of Rs 16.5 billion on non-communicable diseases, representing 66.52% of the total health expenditure. The lion’s share of this amount, that is, some around Rs 3.6 billion, was spent on the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. In addition, Mauritius spent Rs 1.2 billion and Rs 955 million on diabetes and cancer, respectively in 2016.  NHA 2017 confirms the high correlation between per capita spending on health and the general health status of the population. In developed nations like the United Kingdom and Singapore, where per capita expenditure on health is more than US$ 2,200, life expectancy is over 80 years and child health indicators are figured at one digit. On the other hand, in countries like Mauritius and Seychelles where per capita spending on health is between US$ 500 to US$ 600, life expectancy is in the range of 66 to 75 years and infant mortality rate ranges between 11.0 and 14.0 per thousand live births.