Belize - Health

Belize is relatively free of endemic diseases; during 1996–2000, communicable diseases were on the decline. Cardiovascular disease, mental illness, external trauma, and HIV/AIDS are significant public health problems. In 1995, 9,413 malaria cases were diagnosed. Belize was reported as a cholera-infected country in 1996, with 25 reported cases during that year. There are eight public hospitals. The Cayo and Belize districts have two hospitals each and all the remaining districts have one. There are 40 health centers and 35 rural satellites. As of 1999, there were an estimated 0.1 physicians and 1.8 nurses per 1,000 people.

Life expectancy was 69 years in 1999 and the infant mortality rate in 1999 was 32 per 1,000 live births. The total fertility rate was 4.0 per woman. There were 30 births per 1,000 people in 1999. The total mortality rate was estimated at 4.6 deaths per 1,000 people as of 2002. About 90% of one-year-old children had been vaccinated against measles by the mid-1990s. In 1995, 82% of the Belize population had access to safe water and 57% had access to adequate sanitation. As of 1999, however, only 69% of rural households in the south of the country had safe water. As of 1999, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS was estimated at 2,400 and deaths from AIDS that year were estimated at 170. The government has implemented a strategic program to deal with the AIDS epidemic.