The indicator is useful for assessing the potential impact of health care on a population’s health, given the assumption that there are a set of premature deaths that should not have occurred in the presence of timely and effective medical interventions. In other words, the causes of such deaths are considered treatable, and these deaths are therefore regarded as avoidable with appropriate medical care. 

Owing to a correction made in the WHO Global Mortality Database regarding the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) code grouping process, data for 32.2% of the ICD codes defined in the technical specifications for this indicator cannot be obtained. Also, the existing baseline and target values differ from figures found in WHO data. It is therefore necessary to adjust the target to 77.6 deaths per 100 000 population, and the baseline has been updated to 93.2 deaths per 100 000 population. 

Based on the current information, to reach the 2025 target, an annual reduction of -2.6% is required. The current rate is -1.4%, indicating that the Region is not likely to achieve the target despite consistent decreases in the mortality amenable to health care rate (MAHR) among Member States. In addition, mortality from preventable causes is likely higher than the data indicate. 

Recommendations 

• Focus on the implementation of critical health care quality interventions, especially in countries with disproportionately high rates of mortality amenable to health care. 

• Adopt approaches validated by PASB for estimating mortality data in countries to enhance monitoring capabilities for this indicator.