Conclusion
The past year has been historic for global health, largely because of commitment from a range of partners to develop and deliver the next generation of health tools—from new vaccines to prevent meningitis, malaria, tuberculosis, and dengue fever, to new methods of preventing HIV infection and treating neglected tropical diseases. These successes would not have been possible without support from the US Government through its expert agencies, leaders in the US Congress, and the administration. These policymakers seized on a growing desire to prioritize innovation and science to develop global health technologies. The Global Health Technologies Coalition calls on Congress and the administration to take the following policy actions to build on this momentum and bridge critical gaps that remain:
Ensure wise US investments
- Sustain and protect US investments in global health research and product development.
- Develop concrete plans to incorporate research and development as a key priority within US global health and development programs.
- Ensure that US investments in global health research are coordinated, efficient, and streamlined.
Streamline regulatory processes
- Ensure that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) releases the recommendations from its neglected diseases review group.
- Establish stronger partnerships between the FDA and other regulatory stakeholders.
- Enhance the FDA’s internal capacity in neglected diseases.
- Bolster the FDA’s engagement with groups developing global health tools.
- Include appropriations language in the US budget on the FDA’s role in global health and fund the agency to fulfill this role.
Stimulate research and development
- Formally establish a cross-agency working group to explore US investment in incentives and innovative financing mechanisms for global health.
- Engage with civil society, nongovernmental organizations, and private industry.
- Engage with other governments and donors to explore and support incentives and innovative financing.
- Support a portfolio of incentives and financing mechanisms to stimulate needed research and development at all stages of the product development process.
- Conduct continuous rigorous assessments of each incentive and financing mechanism that the United States supports.
Global health research will ultimately improve the lives of people around the world, especially those most in need. As this report shows, global health research is also a smart economic investment for the United States. In the current fiscal climate, members of Congress and the administration should set priorities for the nation and fund them accordingly. Investments that help save lives—while also creating jobs and spurring economic growth both here and abroad—should be among the country’s highest priorities. Past leadership shows that Congress and the administration understand why support for global health research and the innovation it breeds in global development needs to be sustained and elevated. US policymakers must continue to protect and elevate this investment in the future.