Minister of Health, Dr Fenton Ferguson, says the removal of donor funding for health programmes puts the current achievements at risk of reversal.

He said in this regard several factors apart from countries' national income should be considered when determining whether donor funding is provided to assist with the public health sector.

Ferguson was speaking on Monday at the Global Fund Expert Panel of the Equitable Access Initiative held in Geneva, Switzerland.

He said Jamaica's achievements in health, like many other countries, are at risk because "we are poised to lose many benefits and financing assistance in several areas as a result of being categorised as an upper middle income nation."

He said while the classification may be justified from a conventional accounting approach, from a development perspective other factors than national income must be taken into consideration.

In the case of Jamaica, he said the fact that the disposable income which must support national expenditure is significantly restricted, and that debt servicing places a great burden on the national budget are important considerations.

Others include the poverty indices, the data within a country's social safety net mechanisms, out-of-pocket payment required for health care and associated costs, the cost of the basic food package versus the minimum wage, and health spend as a proportion of overall government spending.

Ferguson explained that the retrenchment of donor funds to countries with a similar profile as Jamaica undermines efforts to provide equity in access to health care especially for the most vulnerable.