The Lancet examines goals, challenges of U.S. Office of Global Health Diplomacy

Mar 30 2013

The Lancet reports on the role of diplomacy in U.S. global health efforts, highlighting a recent appearance by Ambassador Eric Goosby, head of the U.S. State Department's Office of Global Health Diplomacy and the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator, at a town hall forum at the Kaiser Family Foundation in Washington, D.C. Goosby "said the Office of Global Health Diplomacy will work to sustain U.S.-funded health programs in partner countries," according to the journal. "That is best realized through the highest level dialogue in these countries with leadership," Goosby said, adding, "The kind of huge diplomatic tool chest that is out there will try to support, amplify, and sustain these discussions … to better ensure their permanence, basically, to save more lives," the journal writes.

"The focus on diplomacy comes at a time when the U.S. budget crisis has slowed down the rate of spending on global health programs, Jennifer Kates, Kaiser's vice president and director of global health and HIV policy, tells The Lancet," the journal writes. In addition to funding, The Lancet discusses the importance of country ownership to the sustainability of global health programs and how the U.S. government aims to use diplomacy to engage further with country leadership. The article includes additional comments from Goosby and Kates; Amanda Glassman, director of global health policy and senior fellow at the Center for Global Development; and Bob Chapman, director of U.S. government and multilateral global health advocacy at the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (Jaffe, 3/30). The Lancet also includes an audio news file featuring an interview with Goosby (Mohamedi/David, 3/29).