 Chronic Chagas disease remains a major health problem in many Latin American countries , despite the effectiveness of <unk> and <unk> measures , such as eliminating the transmitting insects . However , several landmarks have been achieved in the fight against it in Latin America , including a reduction by 72 % of the incidence of human infection in children and young adults in the countries of the Southern Cone Initiative , and at least three countries ( Uruguay , in 1997 , and Chile , in 1999 , and Brazil in 2006 ) have been certified free of <unk> and <unk> transmission . In Argentina , <unk> transmission has been interrupted in 13 of the 19 endemic provinces , and major progress toward this goal has also been made in both Paraguay and Bolivia . 
