THE ROLE OF SOCIAL PROTECTION SYSTEMS IN COVID 19. DESCRIPTION OF HEALTH INEQUALITIES AND MEASURES TAKEN.

Introduction: The new disease covid 19 from the day it was declared a pandemic (March 2020) until today has significantly differentiated the map of health inequalities around the world. Social protection systems and the welfare state continue to receive strong shocks. Aim: This paper attempted to present the effects of the social protection components, to describe the causes that exacerbated health inequalities and to report on the measures taken by the welfare states in an effort to alleviate the problems that arose during the pandemic. Methods: Literature review in international databases (PubMed, Google Scholar) using specific keywords in Greek and English, in published books and references on the internet. Results: The conceptual definition of the terms equality in health, health determinants, welfare state, social protection systems, contributes to the understanding of the effects of the new disease covid 19 impact on the health status and health care of the population. Gender, age, financial status, comorbidity of mental and physical problems, living conditions, are directly related to susceptibility to the disease. The virus affects all areas of social protection. The aid measures taken concern work, insurance, housing, education and sickness and housing benefits were given. Conclusion: Covid 19 disease increases health inequalities, alongside people who are disadvantaged due to their socio-economic status and health status are more susceptible to the new coronavirus. The pandemic is pushing social protection systems in many ways