[Social determinants of access to the explicit guarantees health program implemented in Chile]

In Chile, an eventual implementation of a plan with universal health coverage is a challenge. The already implemented explicit health guarantees plan (GES) could be a benchmark. For this reason, it is important to obtain information about the results of its implementation.

To identify the social determinants of health that influence the access to GES.

The National Socioeconomic Characterization Survey performed in 2017 was used as a data source. The beneficiaries of 20 diseases covered by GES and inquired in the survey were considered for the present study.

People with the higher probability of access to GES plan belong to the lowest income quintiles, are nationals, live in the central-southern metropolitan Santiago, have lower education, have a public health insurance program (FONASA) and are aged mostly over 60 years. The diseases with the highest probability of access to the program are primary arterial hypertension, type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus, acute myocardial infarction, moderate and severe bronchial asthma, breast cancer, colon cancer, and bipolar disorder.

The access probability to the GES program is in line with the epidemiological profile of the Chilean population, and with a greater social vulnerability.