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U.S. must take steps to rebuild trust broken by CIA's fake vaccination campaign in Pakistan

"The news that the Central Intelligence Agency had been running a fake vaccination program in Pakistan first surfaced in 2011 and quickly ignited fears that the covert operation could compromise the global campaign to eradicate polio," Lynn Goldman, dean of the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, and Michael Klag, dean of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, write in a Baltimore Sun opinion piece, noting a number of polio workers have been killed in the country over the last month.

9 Jan 2013

Viewpoints: Fla. Gov. fears Medicaid expansion as Idaho, Missouri and Colorado wrestle with issue ; Few acceptable options for improving Medicare

Twenty-three states, most led by Republican officials, have declared that they will not set up their own health insurance exchanges to help individuals and small businesses find affordable coverage. ... Residents of states where political leaders seem bent on frustrating or sabotaging the health care reforms might well be better off with a federally run exchange.

8 Jan 2013

Adolescents may lose hepatitis B virus protection despite vaccination as infants

New research reveals that a significant number of adolescents lose their protection from hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, despite having received a complete vaccination series as infants. Results in the January 2013 issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, suggest teens with high-risk mothers (those positive for HBeAg) and teens whose immune system fails to remember a previous viral exposure (immunological memory) are behind HBV reinfection.

8 Jan 2013

Support innovative financing mechanisms for global health

"Millions of lives are saved today in developing countries because of bold, innovative financing arrangements over last 10 years.

8 Jan 2013

Secretary of state nominee Sen. John Kerry would continue administration's focus on global health, food security, Devex reports

"President Barack Obama's 'perfect choice' for state secretary" -- Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) -- "is not only expected to advance the administration's agenda on global health and food security, but he might also lend new heft to efforts to rein in climate change, one of Kerry's long-time priorities, with a team of advisers that is expected to include several with a background in international development," Devex reports.

8 Jan 2013

Reflecting on FDA approval of new TB drug

Noting "the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced that it has approved a new treatment for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) that can be used as an alternative when other drugs fail," Kim Lufkin, communications officer at the Global Health Technologies Coalition (GHTC), writes in the coalition's "Breakthroughs" blog, "There is a pressing and urgent need for even more new TB drugs, which makes this new FDA approval so significant."

7 Jan 2013

NEJM begins series of review articles on global health

The January 3 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine "includes the first article in a series of review articles on global health," Harvey Fineberg of the Institute of Medicine and David Hunter of the Harvard School of Public Health write in an NEJM editorial.

4 Jan 2013

New issue of Global Health Governance available online

A new issue of Global Health Governance is available online and features articles focused on human security and health.

4 Jan 2013

Examining military sector's role in global health

In an article published in Global Health Governance, Derek Licina, an U.S. Army Medical Service Corps Officer, writes about the international military sector's role in global health activities, which "has gained visibility in recent years."

3 Jan 2013

President Obama nominates Sen. John Kerry for Secretary of State

"President Barack Obama has nominated Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) for Secretary of State," the Huffington Post reports, noting, "Kerry, a decorated Vietnam War veteran and 2004 Democratic presidential nominee, will replace Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton."

3 Jan 2013

Opinion pieces, editorial address murders of polio workers in Pakistan

Several newspapers published opinion pieces regarding the recent murders of polio vaccination workers in Pakistan.

3 Jan 2013

Paul Farmer appointed as U.N. Special Adviser for Haiti cholera efforts

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon "has appointed renowned United States physician Paul Farmer to help galvanize support to eliminate cholera in Haiti, where the disease has already claimed over 7,750 lives," the U.N. News Centre reports.

3 Jan 2013

Third annual conference of GAPIO held in Kerala, India

Physicians of Indian origin from across the globe congregated at the third annual conference of Global Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (GAPIO) in Kochi, Kerala, with a vision to improve healthcare worldwide from 1st to 3rd January 2013. GAPIO was launched in January 2011 to bring together 1.2 million physicians of Indian origin in the world on one professional platform. This substantial workforce of physicians is a valuable resource, which can help to mobilize significant developments in the healthcare globally. GAPIO already has representation from 15 countries in the President's Council.

2 Jan 2013

Looking back at global health in 2012

In a joint post in the Center for Global Development's (CGD) "Global Health Policy" blog, Amanda Glassman, director of global health policy and a senior fellow at the CGD; research assistant Denizhan Duran; and Kate McQueston, program coordinator to the global health policy team, recap major global health events in 2012, linking to previous coverage of highlighted issues.

21 Dec 2012

Reviewing G-FINDER report findings

Nick Chapman, a policy analyst at Policy Cures, writes in a guest post on the Global Health Technologies Coalition's "Breakthroughs" blog about "the results of the latest G-FINDER survey on global funding of [research and development (R&D)] for neglected diseases."

21 Dec 2012

Blogs respond to attacks against polio workers in Pakistan

The following blog posts were published in response to a series of attacks against polio workers in Pakistan this week, which have left eight dead since Monday.

21 Dec 2012

New low-cost combined therapy shows promise against malaria

Malaria brings misery and death to millions in the developing world each year, and fighting it keeps medical researchers up at night because the mosquito-borne parasite Plasmodium falciparum, which causes the deadliest form of the disease, has developed resistance to every drug thrown at it. Resistance has cut short the useful life of nearly every therapy tried so far, experts say.

21 Dec 2012

Improvements in child survival a 'sweeping accomplishment'

"There is reason for optimism about the health of the world's youngest," columnist Tina Rosenberg writes in the New York Times "Opinionator" blog, noting, "A massive study published last week called the Global Burden of Disease report found that in the past 20 years, the death rate of children under five has dropped in every country in the world save three -- Kuwait, Tonga and Zimbabwe."

21 Dec 2012

Mayo Clinic to receive Biomarkers of Gut Function grant

Mayo Clinic announced today that it will receive funding through the Biomarkers of Gut Function and Health program within the Grand Challenges in Global Health initiative. This initiative was launched by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to overcome persistent bottlenecks preventing the creation of new and better health solutions for the developing world. William Faubion, M.D., a Mayo Clinic gastroenterologist, will continue to pursue a research project titled "Gut Permeability in Environmental Enteropathy."

21 Dec 2012

Statement, article respond to new U.S. Office of Global Health Diplomacy

The State Department on Friday announced the selection of U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator Ambassador Eric Goosby to lead the State Department's new Office of Global Health Diplomacy.

21 Dec 2012