Severe shortages of medicines and medical supplies have decimated public health care.

Food is largely unavailable and unaffordable for many.

Rather than keep people safe, Venezuelan police and national guardsmen have become political enforcers used by President Nicolas Maduro to squash dissent.

Anti-government protests were common last year, with hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans demonstrating throughout the country. In response, government security forces killed 163 protestors and imprisoned thousands.

The humanitarian crisis can only worsen as Venezuela's economy continues to crumble.

It already suffers the world's highest inflation rate, and the International Monetary Fund projects it will skyrocket to 13,000 percent by year's end.

The big question is: What can the international community do to hasten a return to democracy?

In the past year, the U.S. and various Latin American countries have ramped up pressure on the regime. The U.S. has sanctioned more than 50 corrupt government officials and barred Venezuela from selling its oil debt in the U.S.

These actions have increased the strain on Maduro and his cronies, but more must be done.

Read the full article on Venezuela by Ana Quintana at The Heritage Foundation