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China, U.K. form global health partnership

"The Chinese and British governments are cooperating on a program to improve global health policy for developing countries, with the launch in Beijing on January 16 of a new U.K.-China partnership," China Daily reports.

19 Jan 2013

Deriving lessons from cholera epidemic in Haiti and looking forward to future actions

Noting U.N. peacekeepers played a role in bringing cholera to Haiti, Victoria Fan, a research fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD), writes in the group's "Global Health Policy" blog, "Blame aside, there are undoubtedly lessons to be learned by looking back at how this epidemic came to pass in Haiti. More importantly, looking ahead there are key steps that should be taken to eliminate cholera in Haiti."

19 Jan 2013

New report highlights links between NTDs and socio-economic prosperity

A recently released report, entitled "Social and Economic Impact Review on Neglected Tropical Diseases," highlights links between neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and socio-economic prosperity.

19 Jan 2013

Survey finds shortage of TB medicines in U.S.; Consequences similar to lack of access in developing countries, advocate says

"More than 80 percent of health departments in the United States that treat tuberculosis [TB] resistant to standard treatment have trouble obtaining the drugs they need to cure the disease, according to a national survey released on Thursday," Reuters reports.

18 Jan 2013

Reports examine global NTD response one year after London declaration

Two reports released Wednesday provide an update on the global response against neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) a year after leaders of some of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies met in London and agreed to fight the diseases, Guardian health editor Sarah Boseley reports in her "Global Health Blog."

18 Jan 2013

'Science Speaks' examines new Senate committee members' support for global health

The Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog profiles Sens. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), discusses their different committee appointments, and examines their support for global health initiatives.

18 Jan 2013

92% of voters surveyed favor U.S. support of WHO, Better World Campaign poll shows

A new poll released on Wednesday by the Better World Campaign (BWC) "found that 61 percent of voters see the WHO favorably and 92 percent say the United States should continue contributing money to the agency," The Hill's "Healthwatch" blog reports.

18 Jan 2013

Mass poultry vaccination programmes lead to dramatic decline in Salmonella infections

Mass poultry vaccination programmes introduced to combat Salmonella infections have led to a dramatic fall in the number of cases since the late 1990s, according to a researcher at the University of Liverpool.

17 Jan 2013

Continued investment needed to maintain gains against malaria

In this post in Management Sciences for Health's (MSH) "Global Health Impact" blog, Frederick Hartman, the global technical lead for communicable diseases and epidemic preparedness, and regional portfolio director, East Africa at the Center for Health Services at MSH, examines advances made in malaria control over the past decade, writing, "Malaria is still one of the five leading causes of child under-five mortality worldwide, and deserves continuing attention."

17 Jan 2013

Republican Rep. Ed Royce to chair House Foreign Affairs Committee

The Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog profiles Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.), who will chair the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

17 Jan 2013

Blog highlights global health challenges, opportunities in 2013

Chatham House's "Expert Comment" blog features commentary on four global health issues the organization's experts view as important in the year ahead.

16 Jan 2013

Polio official discusses eradication efforts in Gates Foundation blog interview

In the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog, Eric Porterfield, director of global health communications at the United Nations Foundation, interviews Jeffrey Bates, a polio communications for development (C4D) officer, about India's efforts to eradicate polio.

16 Jan 2013

GHTC blog discusses potential impact of sequestration on global health R&D

In the Global Health Technologies Coalition's (GHTC) "Breakthroughs" blog, Ashley Bennett, senior policy associate at GHTC, "provides a summary of what the compromise means for the federal budget, and what might happen to global health and international development programs."

16 Jan 2013

Aggressive breast cancer’s metastasis molecular switch identified

Scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College have discovered the molecular switch that allows aggressive triple negative breast cancer cells to grow the amoeba-like protrusions they need to crawl away from a primary tumor and metastasize throughout the body. Their findings, published in Cancer Cell, suggest a novel approach for developing agents to treat cancer once it has spread.

15 Jan 2013

PlusNews examines potential cuts in U.S. HIV funding to Ethiopia

PlusNews discusses potential cuts in U.S. funding for HIV-related activities in Ethiopia and the role of greater in-country funding for health. In 2013, "Ethiopia will experience a 79 percent reduction in U.S. HIV financing from PEPFAR," according to a blog post written last year by Amanda Glassman, director of global health policy and senior fellow at the Center for Global Development, the news service notes.

11 Jan 2013

CSIS talks with Malawi President Banda about women's health, empowerment

The Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) "wanted to learn more about how women leaders in Africa are bringing new attention to women's health and empowerment in their own countries, and to bring those voices into the discussion about U.S. policy priorities for women's global health," so a small CSIS team traveled to Malawi and Zambia in December 2012, Janet Fleischman and Julia Nagel of CSIS write in the group's Smart Global Health blog.

11 Jan 2013

Leveraging public-private partnerships to improve global health

"Although global health was historically dominated by U.N. agencies and bilateral organizations, new partnerships with the private sector have emerged since the 1990s," Jeffrey Sturchio, senior partner at Rabin Martin, and Adel Mahmoud, a professor at Princeton University, write in the Huffington Post's "Impact" blog.

11 Jan 2013

Examining growing attention toward health systems strengthening

In an article published in the journal Health Policy and Planning, Tamara Hafner and Jeremy Shiffman of the Department of Public Administration and Policy at American University examine the factors behind why "many organizations involved in global health have come to direct attention and resources to the issue of health systems strengthening," especially since 2005, according to the abstract. They "construct a case history and analyze the factors shaping and inhibiting global political attention for health systems strengthening," the abstract states.

11 Jan 2013

Global health spending levels remain unresolved under 'fiscal cliff' deal

The "fiscal cliff" deal agreed to by Congress "leaves suspended in mid-air the fates of programs essential to meeting the goals of continued global health responses -- including the implementation of PEPFAR's blueprint for an AIDS-free generation, and whatever promise the new Office of Global Health Diplomacy will offer," the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog reports.

11 Jan 2013

UNICEF Executive Director discusses need for commodities market for life-saving medicines

In this Forbes interview, Rahim Kanani of the Skoll World Forum speaks with UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake about reducing child mortality and the need for a commodities market to improve access to medicines and health care.

9 Jan 2013