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Unanswered questions about universal health coverage remain

Noting the WHO meeting on universal health coverage held earlier this week, Amanda Glassman, director of global health policy and a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD), and health economist Ursula Giedion write in the CGD's "Global Health Policy" blog.

22 Feb 2013

Team Danmark, Global Health Partner enter exclusive collaboration agreement

Through its subsidiary Gildhøj Privathospital, Global Health Partner is entering into an exclusive collaboration agreement with Team Danmark to provide Denmark's leading elite athletes with sports medicine and sports surgery.

22 Feb 2013

Coalition of aid groups warn of sequestration's effects on humanitarian aid in open letter

"A coalition of aid groups including CARE, Catholic Relief Services, InterAction, the International Rescue Committee, Mercy Corps, Refugees International, World Vision, and many others delivered a letter to the White House and Congress Wednesday pointing out that 2013 has already been a year where the resources devoted to humanitarian assistance have been strained to the breaking point" and "warning that the impending arbitrary budget cuts known as the 'sequester' will have dire consequences for people in crisis situations in the world's most conflict-affected areas," Foreign Policy's "The Cable" reports.

22 Feb 2013

Weekend reading: Why a trip to the ER costs more than a college semester; Searching for the 'stomach share;' Lessons for the U.S. from Rwanda

Routine Care, Unforgettable Bills .... Sean was allowed to see the doctor only after he advanced MD Anderson $7,500 from his credit card. ... The total cost, in advance, for Sean to get his treatment plan and initial doses of chemotherapy was $83,900.

21 Feb 2013

'Cap-and-trade system' proposal for global health funding

In a PLoS Medicine "Policy Forum" article, Luis Carrasco, Richard Coker, and Alex Cook of the National University of Singapore propose "a cap-and-trade system" for global health funding that is based on "global carbon permit markets to mitigate climate change."

21 Feb 2013

USP evaluates Raman device's potential to detect counterfeit and substandard medicines

With substandard and counterfeit medicines a dangerous and growing problem in the developing world and elsewhere, identifying new technologies to detect such drugs is an urgent matter. In a new study published in the Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis, scientists from the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) evaluated a handheld Raman device's potential to detect counterfeit and substandard medicines.

21 Feb 2013

Blog examines potential impact of sequestration on global health

Noting "several federal agencies released new details about the impact of sequestration on their budgets and programs," the Global Health Technologies Coalition's Communications Officer Kim Lufkin writes in the group's "Breakthroughs" blog.

21 Feb 2013

Blog profiles ranking Republican on Senate HHS Appropriations subcommittee

The Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog profiles Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), the ranking Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee's subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies. Moran is an advocate of funding for the National Institutes of Health, the blog notes, adding that during his seven terms as

21 Feb 2013

Child cancer survival rate progress threatened by lack of new drug development

Remarkable improvements in survival from childhood cancer have taken place in high- income countries over the past 50 years, but further progress is being threatened by increasingly strict research regulations and insufficient development of new drugs, according to a major new Lancet Oncology Series on improving cancer care for children and young people.

20 Feb 2013

Estimating budget sequestration's impact on global health, foreign aid

Writing in the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition's (USGLC) blog, Molly Lester, government relations associate at the USGLC, highlights a report released last week by the House Appropriations Committee Democrats that outlines the potential impact of budget sequestration on different agencies and issues.

20 Feb 2013

Gates Foundation blog series examines contraception options for women, girls

Writing in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog, Gary Darmstadt, head of the family health division at the foundation, and Monica Kerrigan, a family planning expert, introduce the blog's new series, "What's Your Method?," which "offers a window into many of the contraceptive options for women and girls around the world."

20 Feb 2013

New issue of Global Health Diplomacy Network's 'Health Diplomacy Monitor' available online

Volume 4, Issue 1 of the Global Health Diplomacy Network's "Health Diplomacy Monitor" is now available online.

20 Feb 2013

Secretary of State Kerry expresses commitment to USAID mission in speech at headquarters

In his first visit to USAID headquarters since assuming the position of Secretary of State, John Kerry on Friday "said he is 'deeply, deeply committed' to USAID's mission of opening up opportunities to people in need" and that "[h]e fully supports their work and will fight for their cause in upcoming budget battles and hot spots around the globe," Devex's "Development Newswire" reports.

20 Feb 2013

Study evaluates effectiveness of H1N1 vaccine in pregnant women against adverse infant outcomes

Pregnant women who received the H1N1 influenza vaccine during the 2009 pandemic were less likely to have premature babies, and their babies weighed more on average.

20 Feb 2013

Secretary of State Kerry warns of budget sequestration's consequences for humanitarian aid, global health in letter to Senator

"The State Department will have to stop humanitarian aid to millions of people, cut foreign assistance to Israel, and delay efforts to ramp up diplomatic security abroad after the Sept. 11 attack in Benghazi if [budget] sequestration goes into effect next month, according to Secretary of State John Kerry," Foreign Policy's "The Cable" blog reports.

19 Feb 2013

U.K., Ugandan Government sign new healthcare alliance

A Ugandan-UK Healthcare Alliance, which will help improve health care for people living in the East African country, has been launched this week after being developed by a University of Manchester health professional.

From The University of Manchester 19 Feb 2013

MIR names Aetna as Health Insurer of the Year

Aetna a leading global diversified health care benefits company, has been named "Health Insurer of the Year" for 2013 by MENA Insurance Review (MIR), a leading magazine covering the insurance sector in the Middle East and North Africa.

18 Feb 2013

Blog examines child survival efforts in India

"Last week, the Government of India held a star-studded National Summit on child survival, 'co-convened' with USAID and UNICEF," Victoria Fan, a research fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD), and Rachel Silverman, a research assistant for the global health team at the CGD, write in the center's "Global Health Policy" blog.

16 Feb 2013

Senate Appropriations Subcommittee gets 4 new members

"The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations, with oversight that includes funding for the State Department and USAID, has four new members announced this week with diverse approaches and backgrounds in global health issues," the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog reports.

16 Feb 2013

WHO holds 2-day meeting to discuss need for global health statistics

"At a two-day meeting organized and hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO) [in Geneva], 60 leaders in the field of global health statistics drew up a set of proposals to improve the world's ability to count the sick and the dead," ScienceInsider reports.

16 Feb 2013