COVID-19 reminded us of the world’s vulnerability to communicable diseases, but the burden from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is also growing. Each year 17 million people die from an NCD before age 70 and 86% of these premature deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. In this Policy Research Talk on February 6, 2024, World Bank Lead Economist Damien de Walque discussed how policy makers can prioritize investments in health care systems so that they can both confront the changing burden of diseases and prepare for future pandemics.
