In a bid to better respond to both domestic and global needs, as well as future threats, the Biden Administration plans to spend billions of dollars to expand US vaccine manufacturing capacity enabling production of 1 billion vaccine doses a year by mid-2022, two top White House officials told US media on Wednesday.  The announcement […] Continue reading ->
Pfizer has signed a voluntary license with the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) to share the patents and knowledge to manufacture its new COVID-19 treatment drug, Paxlovid.  According to the agreement, the MPP will be able to granting sub-licenses to qualified generic medicine manufacturers to supply the medicine in 95 countries, once regulatory authorization or approval […] Continue reading ->
While it pales in comparison to tobacco industry marketing, two new capital investment funds worth some $75 million to support low- and middle-income countries in their fight against tobacco are being created by signatories to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and a related Protocol on illegal sales.  Together, the funds would yield an estimated […] Continue reading ->
While China and India’s last-minute refusal to commit to an end to fossil fuel at COP26 has caused depression and despair amongst many developing country delegates and climate activists, the mental health of millions is already severely affected by what climate disasters have done to their lives. Humidity and heatwaves are linked to increased suicides, […] Continue reading ->
As the Glasgow Climate Conference winds to a close, the final COP26 declaration appears destined to contain watered-down language on fossil fuel phase-out, and no clear way forward for the $100 billion in finance needed by low-income countries. Against that landscape, Médecins Sans Frontières Dr Maria Guevara talks about why health is the elephant in […] Continue reading ->
Pakistan and eight other countries, mostly in or around conflict zones, face the largest gaps in vaccine commitments needed to reach a WHO goal of 70% coverage by September 2022.  The data is part of a new “COVID Global Tracker” – launched Wednesday during a first-ever meeting of the world’s foreign ministers, convened by US […] Continue reading ->
A draft agreement released by UN Climate on Wednesday “calls upon parties to accelerate the phasing out of coal and subsidies for fossil fuels” – as countries work toward reaching consensus by the time the Glasgow Climate Conference (COP26) ends on Friday. The word ‘health’ also was noticeably absent from the draft text, reflecting the […] Continue reading ->