A World Health Organization report released today has found that global malaria cases are around the same level as last year, confirming that progress to address the disease has stalled. Rates of malaria are up in high-burden countries, while rates have decreased in other countries due to country-led efforts, the report found. To bring progress back on track to meet global targets, the WHO and partners today announced a new response led by high-burden countries to scale up malaria prevention and treatment. Continue reading ->
WASHINGTON, DC -- The United States is one of the biggest funders of reproductive health and family planning in multiple developing countries. It is also one of the biggest distributors of contraceptive services in the international market providing all but one: Abortion. The US congressional midterm elections taking place on 6 November could influence further proposed changes to these policies by the current US administration, potentially affecting the lives of millions of women worldwide, for better or worse. Continue reading ->
BERLIN -- Answering the call by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Ghana's President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and Norway's Prime Minister Erna Solberg for a global action plan for pushing global health, heads of 11 major health organisations today signed “a commitment to find new ways of working together to accelerate progress towards achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals” at the close of the World Health Summit in Berlin. Continue reading ->
The United Nations late last month sought to hold landmark high-level meetings on ending tuberculosis and fighting noncommunicable diseases like cancer and cardiovascular disease, with mixed results. Now a Swiss-based expert is looking at the outcomes and what comes next, and in a webinar talked about the political trade-offs resulting from the meetings, the need to push for an integrated agenda on Universal Health Coverage, and how the private sector should be engaged. Continue reading ->
BERLIN -- Ten years after establishing the Berlin World Health Summit, the M8 alliance of medical institutes around the globe sees some noticeable progress in political commitment to the health agenda. “Gifts” presented at the opening ceremony yesterday in the German capital include the announcement of German Health Minister Jens Spahn to establish a Hub for Global Health and step up its financial contributions to the World Health Organization (WHO) to 115 million euros over the next four years. The three-day summit also will receive a global action plan to catch up with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 on health and well-being for all. Continue reading ->