In a little-publicised move, the WHA last week agreed to close a critical loophole in the WHO Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (PIP) Framework that could have allowed commercial vaccine manufacturers to indirectly make use of biological information about flu strains from another country – without providing that country with any benefits from the vaccines or antivirals […] Continue reading ->
A new series of briefing documents aimed at helping European Union (EU) policymakers tackle high medicines prices has been released by the non-profit think tank, Medicines Law and Policy. Image Credits: Medicines Law & Policy, Medicines Law & Policy . Continue reading ->
In the wake of a World Health Assembly that became a focus of intense activist and social media attention over a WHO resolution on medicines price transparency, member states are now looking at new rules for shaping involvement of NGOs and other “non-state actors” at public WHO meetings. Image Credits: WHO. Continue reading ->
There has been a dramatic increase in security incidents around the epicentre of the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), but a sharp decrease in hospital transmissions, increased vaccinations, and new measures to safeguard response teams, are positive signs, WHO officials told reporters today in a briefing. Image Credits: WHO/L.Mackenzie, Catherine […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Assembly today approved a milestone resolution to support greater public disclosure of prices for medicines and other health products – capping a nail-biting series of negotiations that continued until the very moment the measure came to the floor. Image Credits: Giulia Grillo, WHO. Continue reading ->
A closed-door group of negotiators reached agreement late Monday evening on a game-changing resolution to support greater public disclosure of prices in medicine markets, as well as costs of related R&D investments. Image Credits: Catherine Saez, WHO. Continue reading ->
[Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, Press Release] Agencies warn of unprecedented situation in the DRC as cholera and measles epidemics compound Ebola challenges Geneva / Goma 27 May 2019 – More than 800,000 people will be immunised against cholera in North Kivu in the Eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) following the launch […] Continue reading ->
The latest working draft World Health Assembly resolution calling for game-changing public disclosure of the prices paid for medicines, vaccines and other health products by countries and health systems shows a broad coalition of countries from Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia forming around the compromise draft. The draft, obtained Sunday by Health Policy Watch, […] Continue reading ->
After a grueling 34 hours of nearly non-stop negotiations, World Health Assembly delegates appeared to be close to a final agreement Saturday evening on a resolution supporting more systematic disclosure of prices for medicines purchased and sold on national and global markets; a “drafting group” is expected to reconvene Monday morning to put the finishing […] Continue reading ->
While delegates remained bogged down today in negotiations to find consensus on a resolution to increase transparency of pharma prices, five United Nations agencies and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria forged a brand new collaboration to promote local production of medicines. The World Health Organization, the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), […] Continue reading ->