COVID-19 Deaths Are Twice As High In The Bronx, New York City’s Poorest & Most Ethnically Diverse Borough, As Compared To Manhattan

30/04/2020 Svĕt Lustig Vijay

COVID-19 deaths per capita are twice as high in The Bronx, New York City’s poorest and most racially diverse borough, as compared to the predominantly white and more affluent borough of Manhattan, reported a new study published in JAMA on Wednesday. The study’s findings draw out the potentially stark differences in the way the virus […] Continue reading ->

COVID-19 Lockdowns Leave Vaccine Campaigns On Hold; More Africans Could Die From Other Infectious Diseases, Warns GAVI, The Vaccine Alliance

30/04/2020 Svĕt Lustig Vijay

Routine vaccine campaigns, suspended worldwide in the wake of COVID-19 lockdowns, must be resumed immediately or else some countries could face a big surge in deaths from other preventable diseases, said Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance. Speaking at a press briefing Thursday, Berkley warned that routine immunizations for other infectious diseases such […] Continue reading ->

WHO May Host Virtual World Health Assembly May 18 – COVID-19 To Be Main Agenda Item

28/04/2020 Elaine Ruth Fletcher & Svĕt Lustig Vijay

For the first time ever, the World Health Assembly appears set to meet in a one-day virtual session on May 18, which would be devoted largely to debate the global COVID-19 pandemic, sources told Health Policy Watch on Tuesday. European Union member states are hopeful that a draft WHA resolution to create a voluntary patent […] Continue reading ->

Combined Impact Of COVID-19 And Malaria Could Be ‘Catastrophic’, Warns Leading Research Group

24/04/2020 Elaine Ruth Fletcher

The combined impact of Covid-19 and malaria in regions where malaria is widespread “could be catastrophic,” warned David Reddy, CEO of Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), the Geneva-based product development partnership, just ahead of World Malaria Day, which is celebrated on Saturday, 25 April. His commment to Health Policy Watch, came in the wake of […] Continue reading ->

US Funding Suspension To WHO May Affect Other Essential Health Services

22/04/2020 Grace Ren

Essential health programmes such as polio eradication and trauma management, and programmes in the World Health Organizations’ Emergencies program, will be hit hardest by the suspension of US funding to the WHO. “The reality is for my programme, a lot of that US funding is aimed at direct life saving services to people in the […] Continue reading ->

On Earth Day’s 50th Anniversary – Next Generation Health Professionals Call For “Sustainable” COVID-19 Recovery

22/04/2020 Elaine Ruth Fletcher

Will the blue skies and rainbows seen in Delhi and other heavily polluted cities of the world be a fleeting image of the COVID-19 lockdown – or can it signal a change in trends around the world about how countries treat their environments? Save the shot – it may not recur soon. “This drop of […] Continue reading ->

United Nations Approves Second COVID-19 Resolution; Stresses Global Collaboration On R&D, Medicines and Equipment Access

21/04/2020 Editorial team

The UN General Assembly approved a resolution Monday night calling for accelerated scientific cooperation and global coordination to hasten the “rapid development, manufacturing and distribution of diagnostics, anti-viral medicines, personal protective equipment and vaccines” needed to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The resolution, approved in a virtual poll, also called on countries “to immediately take steps […] Continue reading ->

Leave Politics Out Of Pandemic: WHO Rebuts United States Criticism Over COVID-19 Early Warnings

20/04/2020 Elaine Ruth Fletcher & Grace Ren

In characteristically soft-spoken tones, World Health Organization Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus issued his strongest rebuttal yet to the recent allegations by United States President Donald Trump that the WHO had hidden information in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, or failed to inform WHO member states rapidly enough. Calling upon his own […] Continue reading ->

Lady Gaga’s Love Letter To Doctors, Nurses, and Essential Workers – One World, Together at Home Concert

18/04/2020 Tsering Lhamo & Grace Ren

Lady Gaga, the American singer-songwriter, will be curating a massive benefit concert with Global Citizen to fundraise for the global coronavirus crisis. The virtual concert titled, One World Together at Home, will be streamed live on the Global Citizen website and a number of other platforms on 18 April, from 2 – 10PM Eastern Standard Time. […] Continue reading ->

Confronting COVID-19 In A World Without WHO – Seriously?

14/04/2020 Frederick M. Abbott

As the World Health Organization becomes the target of attack by President Trump, his administration and political allies for its alleged failures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the main points of critique are reverberating throughout the media in an escalating cycle. After a week of mounting criticism, Trump announced on Tuesday night that he […] Continue reading ->