Dorli Kahr-Gottlieb writes: For more than 20 years, every October, around 500 leading health experts from governmental institutions, civil society, the academic world, and the private sector meet up at the European Health Forum Gastein (EHFG). They meet to discuss Europe’s contemporary health challenges and address pressing issues around the sustainability of European health systems in a Davos like setting, in the presence of Ministers of Health and senior European Commission and WHO officials. This year’s edition of the EHFG, called simply “Gastein” by the cognoscente, is an official Austrian EU Presidency event. Over the three days, Gastein is not going to shy away from the big European political debates such as how much of a role Europe should play in shaping health policy; but also it is going to take on some of the big global health policy challenges. Continue reading ->
NEW YORK -- World leaders and senior representatives came together today for the first-ever High-Level Meeting on the Fight to End Tuberculosis at United Nations headquarters in New York. At the meeting, heads of state adopted a political declaration with commitments to accelerate action and funding to end the tuberculosis epidemic by 2030. Continue reading ->
NEW YORK -- Steady progress will simply not be enough in the fight against tuberculosis, according to a new report on TB released by the World Health Organization. Instead, the report calls for accelerated progress in order to meet the WHO End TB Strategy and UN Sustainable Development Goal targets on the disease by 2030. Continue reading ->
The negotiated deal over the language of the United Nations political declaration on tuberculosis, a landmark in the fight against TB, has been maintained by member states and finalised on 14 September, marking the end of intense negotiations over language on access to medicines in the document. Continue reading ->
Panos Moumtzis, Assistant UN Secretary-General and Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis (since September 2017) spoke to Health Policy Watch in an exclusive interview Thursday about the escalating crisis in the Syrian conflict, the continued attacks on health care facilities and the mounting international humanitarian and diplomatic efforts to try and avert another humanitarian catastrophe in the war-torn nation. But he also warned he fears the worst might still be ahead of us over the looming battle for Idleb. Continue reading ->
For the first time in history, the elimination of malaria is within reach in the Asia Pacific, according to experts. The world is, indeed, witnessing unprecedented progress in the global effort to eliminate the disease. However, some challenges – such as a looming funding gap that threatens critical malaria-elimination – put at risk the recent improvement. Continue reading ->
Negotiators' agreed draft text for a United Nations political declaration on ending tuberculosis worldwide has been posted for all member states to see, and negotiators hope, not comment on. Under a UN procedure, the text has been placed "under silence" until 10:00am New York time on 14 September. If no one breaks the silence, the text is considered agreed and will advance to the High-Level Meeting on tuberculosis on 26 September as part of the annual UN General Assembly. Continue reading ->
A new pilot project conducted in a remote region of Zambia, MAMaZ Against Malaria, has demonstrated that with the right combination of access to medicines, trained community healthcare workers and rapid response rural transportation systems, malaria mortality in rural areas can be prevented, according to the project partnership. Continue reading ->
The president of Senegal has called on African leaders to increase their investment of resources into health. Continue reading ->
A record more than 41,000 children and adults in the World Health Organization European Region have been infected with measles - one of the most vaccine-preventable infectious diseases known to man – in the first 6 months of 2018, according to a newly published WHO press release. The total number for this period far exceeds the 12-month totals reported for every other year this decade, and this has policymakers grasping for ways to address the rise, while a WHO official says elimination is possible. Continue reading ->