Health technologies have the potential to save millions of lives. New tools are needed to slow the global threat of diseases, including HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and neglected tropical diseases, and tackle many other pressing health needs. For diseases and conditions primarily affecting people in the world’s poorest places, there is little to no commercial market to spur R&D. Strong investment and innovative solutions are needed to catalyze the development of new technologies to bring health and opportunity within reach for all people.
GHTC sent a letter to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee encouraging them, through the reauthorization of the Pandemics and All-Hazards Preparedness Act, to ensure the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) has ample resources and authority to address emerging infectious diseases (EIDs), pandemic influenza (PI), and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The letter specifically calls for the creation of a separate funding line of $300 million for EIDS at BARDA, formalization of BARDA’s AMR workstream, and new reporting requirements on the agency’s work in EIDS, PI, and AMR.
A joint statement developed by GHTC and delivered at the 71st World Health Assembly (WHA) was cited in an article in Homeland Preparedness News.
As people across the globe celebrate World TB Day this week, several groups are highlighting the fact that the current tools to prevent, test, and treat tuberculosis (TB) are greatly outdated. The world has been “beyond antiquated in our approach” to developing new TB tools.
In this regular feature on Breakthroughs, we highlight some of the most interesting reads in global health research from the past week.
