Charles Gore took over as Executive Director of the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), a Geneva-based foundation, in July 2018, just after its board decided to significantly expand its mandate into “essential medicines” – those therapies most critical to tackling some of the world’s leading diseases. Nine months into his term, Health Policy Watch’s William New talked about the strategic course he is steering.Continue reading ->

Image Credits: MPP.

[Press Release by UNAIDS]

Five countries met the target three years ahead of the 2020 deadline and 18 more are on track; however, most countries are lagging behind and risk missing the target completely. UNAIDS urges countries to step up action.  

GENEVA, 22 March 2019—Ahead of World Tuberculosis Day, on 24 March 2019, UNAIDS is urging countries to step up action to meet the 2020 target of reducing tuberculosis (TB) deaths among people living with HIV by 75%, as outlined in the 2016 United Nations Political Declaration on Ending AIDS. World Health Organization estimates show that, globally, TB deaths among people living with HIV have fallen by 42% since 2010, from 520 000 down to 300 000 in 2017.Continue reading ->

Image Credits: UNAIDS.

The World Health Organization and global partners wrapped up a meeting today to develop a vision and strategy prototype for the post-2020 decade of action on vaccines and immunizations. This new plan of action for 2021-2030 will take a different approach that is more “bottom up” and collaborative in engaging countries and other stakeholders to tackle emerging immunization challenges, including recent measles and diphtheria outbreaks and growing “vaccine hesitancy” across WHO regions.Continue reading ->

Image Credits: Kate O'Brien @Kate_L_OBrien, Sam Bradd @drawing_change.

[WHO Press Release]

WHO has issued new guidance to improve treatment of multidrug resistant TB (MDR-TB). WHO is recommending shifting to fully oral regimens to treat people with MDR-TB. This new treatment course is more effective and is less likely to provoke adverse side effects. WHO recommends backing up treatment with active monitoring of drug safety and providing counselling support to help patients complete their course of treatment.Continue reading ->

Image Credits: WHO.

In its first meeting, a carefully chosen advisory committee of experts on gene editing under the World Health Organization this week agreed on the immediate need for a global registry of research that funders should make binding for researchers. The group acknowledged an urgency in addressing human gene editing governance in light of work already taking place, but stopped short of calling for a moratorium at this time, instead issuing a statement that it would be “irresponsible” for anyone to proceed with such research now. Continue reading ->

Image Credits: Pixabay CC.

A new report released today by the World Health Organization and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) found that while overall tuberculosis (TB) mortality and incidence rates have steadily fallen in the European region over the past decade, the disease should not be “underestimated.” The report warns that these rates are not sufficient to reach global targets for reducing the disease, further noting that while the European region may have only 2.8 percent of the world’s TB burden, it has 23 percent of the world’s burden of multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB). Continue reading ->

Image Credits: ECDC, WHO / ECDC.