As countries continue negotiating the unfinished WHO Pandemic Agreement, one of the original accord’s architects warns that delays could put the process itself at risk. “I think it’s quite risky to have a too-long negotiation because that means that we will lose diplomats and public health experts who were involved at the very beginning,” said […] Continue reading ->
A new modelling study suggests that US Medicare “Most-Favored-Nation” policies on drug prices would cut Medicare spending on brand-name drugs, but potentially incentivize companies to increase prices or delay new drug launches elsewhere. Efforts to control the cost of government spending on drugs culminated in a Most-Favored-Nation (MFN) policy, a Trump administration initiative which ties […] Continue reading ->
Country controversies, secret terms, opaque procurement, and massive unspent Congressional funds have characterised the first year of the America First Global Health Strategy. “Services are weaker than they were a year ago, HIV testing is down, treatment of children living with HIV is down, and community-based prevention is gutted,” said Emily Bass, expert consultant for […] Continue reading ->
The Ebola Bundibugyo virus outbreak is showing early signs of containment in the Ituri province in the northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where it first surfaced in April. But in North Kivu province, to the south, cases are still rising fast, with weekly cases nearly doubling over the past two weeks, […] Continue reading ->
Social media will be banned for children under 13 across the European Union according to the newly proposed “EU Kids Act”, announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen today (16 September) in Brussels. The sweeping digital health initiative mandates strict parental oversight for young teenagers aged 13 to under 15 across all 27 […] Continue reading ->
“We have better tools now. We can, if we work together and work better, we can conquer AIDS.” For Dr. Magda Robalo, a public health physician and former Minister of Health of Guinea-Bissau, the science behind the HIV response has advanced dramatically, but the social and political environment surrounding the disease may be moving in […] Continue reading ->
A group of senior national security and health officials contend that cutting funding to the regional health organization will cripple the Western hemisphere’s ability to defend itself against disease threats. The oldest multilateral health organization in the world, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), is fighting many of the same health threats it did at […] Continue reading ->
Following a landmark agreement in the United States on Wednesday, social media giant Meta agreed to pay up to $18 billion to US states. This historic settlement obliges the company to make Instagram and Facebook safer for children. Scientific research – including a landmark report by an expert panel commissioned by the European Commission – […] Continue reading ->
France’s planned youth social media ban for minors under the age of 15 violates fundamental rights, the country’s Constitutional Council ruled on Friday. Critics had warned of a predictable legal defeat following a rushed legislative process. French President Emmanuel Macron announced a revision of the flagship legislation by spring 2027. The European Commission is also […] Continue reading ->
For nearly three hours on 29 July, the US Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee heard one sentence repeated over a hundred times. “On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer based upon my rights under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution.” Dr Anthony Fauci, the 85-year-old retired director of the National […] Continue reading ->