Latest news with #globalhealth
Wall Street Journal
5 hours ago
- Health
- Wall Street Journal
U.S. Global Health Aid Is an Exemplar of Efficiency
It's good that in the end Senate Republicans saved some global health aid. As Bill Gates highlights in his op-ed, 'U.S. Aid for Global Health Is Saving Lives' (July 15), American health aid is remarkably efficient. My organization, the Copenhagen Consensus, has for decades worked with hundreds of the world's top economists and many Nobel laureates to identify the most cost-effective solutions to global challenges. Several American global health initiatives deliver amazing benefits for every dollar spent. Consider Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. Our research shows that the childhood vaccinations Gavi funds currently save nearly four million lives a year. Each dollar spent delivers an astounding $286 in policy benefits. Other countries and philanthropists help achieve this, but the 13% of Gavi's budget that the U.S. contributed last year matters. That $400 million in American outlays alone will help protect 75 million additional children and prevent over 1.2 million deaths in the next five years.
New York Times
8 hours ago
- Health
- New York Times
Empathy and Justice in Global Health
To the Editor: Re 'Why We Risk Ourselves to Care for Others,' by Craig Spencer (Opinion guest essay, July 11): Perhaps I'm not the only one who cried at the end of Dr. Spencer's eloquent portrayal in support of the moral argument for global health. As a nurse, I recognize the congruence of his tenderness in treating a person with Ebola — as well as his own experience of a similar humane touch when he, too, suffered — with nursing's own Code of Ethics. His example epitomized the first provision of that code: 'The nurse practices with compassion and respect for the inherent dignity, worth and unique attributes of every person.' I stand with him and so many others who plead for recognizing and restoring the fundamental value: our mutual obligation to the humanity of us all. Lynn HamiltonAnn Arbor, Mich. To the Editor: Dr. Craig Spencer makes the point that global health activities depend on moral arguments, and he emphasizes the role of empathy. This moral argument may be appropriate for Dr. Spencer's personal decision to provide medical care for Ebola patients in Guinea in 2014. But it is not adequate for reconstructing U.S. global health policy, which has been destroyed by the Trump administration's approach of 'America First.' The Trump approach to global health ethics could be summed up as 'not our problem' and 'not our interest.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Wall Street Journal
4 days ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Readers Respond to Bill Gates on Overseas Health Aid
In his op-ed 'U.S. Aid for Global Health Is Saving Lives' (July 15), Bill Gates calls attention to how 'guaranteeing and pooling demand for HIV/AIDS relief . . . encourages pharmaceutical companies to compete in drug development and manufacturing.' Mr. Gates's altruism is admirable. But he wants U.S. taxpayers to supplement substantially his efforts, while acknowledging that the private sector can do the same job given the right incentives.
Forbes
4 days ago
- Health
- Forbes
Why $500 Million In U.S. Aid Cuts Threatens Global Black Motherhood
Bill Gates gives to a child a rotavirus vaccine in Ghana. Few issues in global health make the stakes clearer than childbirth and Black maternal health. When a U.S. rescission package cuts $500 million earmarked for USAID family planning and reproductive health programs, the results can be far reaching. It lands in packed maternity wards from Lagos to Gaborone, in supply rooms where oxytocin vials are already in short supply, and on the balance sheets of multinationals that depend on a stable, healthy workforce. How Reproductive Health Funding Cuts Create Medical Care Chaos According to Mihir Mankad, director of global health advocacy and policy at MSF USA, the rescission has particularly devastated the medical community abroad. 'Humanitarian and medical groups have been left scrambling to carry out lifesaving services without money, staff, or certainty about what comes next,' Mankad said. 'Doctors don't know what to tell their patients when they ask where they'll be able to continue their HIV or tuberculosis care.' The proposed rescission would claw back half a billion dollars entirely from family-planning and reproductive health accounts. No exemption shields safe delivery kits, contraceptives or the mentorship programs that empower local nurse midwives to become clinical leaders. According to Mankad, the cuts have created devastating consequences for the world's most vulnerable populations. 'The revocation of nearly $500 million for family planning and reproductive health services is particularly devastating, given that the US government previously provided more than 40 percent of global support in this area,' Mankad said. 'This decision crystallizes the significant service gaps that have emerged in the wake of the U.S.' abrupt withdrawal of funding for these critical programs in January.' Nurses give aid to a pregnant woman before delivering a baby at the maternity ward of the central ... More hospital in Freetown. Private philanthropy is scrambling to fill the void. The Gates‑backed Beginnings Fund, also $500 million, will target 10 African nations with the goal of improving the quality of care for 34 million mothers and their infants and saving the lives of 300,000 mothers and newborn babies by 2030. Matching dollars, however, is not the same as matching reach because one operates on a multiyear venture model, and the other has long underwritten national health budgets at scale. Maternal mortality remains worst where women of African descent predominate. The African region records 448 deaths per 100,000 live births, and even though progress has been made, it's been slower than desired. These statistics are not abstract. Each death severs family income streams, depresses local consumption, and deepens intergenerational poverty. For investors tracking frontier markets, the numbers should jolt. The United Nations Population Fund estimates that every dollar invested in modern contraception cuts pregnancy-related medical costs by $1.47. Put differently, the threatened rescission destroys a stream of avoided costs that would otherwise exceed the outlay itself. Add workforce participation gains and education dividends and the net present value climbs further and the operational risks are equally concrete. U.S. firms with African supply chains learned this during Ebola and COVID‑19. Procurement delays spiked when nursing staff fell ill or walked out in protest of unsafe conditions. If maternal deaths rise, skilled labor attrition will follow. The domestic aftermath of this is equally loud. Black women in the United States die in pregnancy at 49.5 per 100,000 live births, which is more than double the national average, according to the CDC. These parallel crises, domestic and global, should sound alarms in corporate risk management departments. Boardrooms should treat the rescission as a contingent liability because multinationals already report climate risk, but a reproductive health risk is its understudied sibling and is equally capable of causing a rupture in operations. Maternal deaths destabilize workforces by removing experienced employees, triggering absenteeism as families grieve, and creating labor shortages that cascade through global supply chains. Poor maternal health outcomes also trigger workforce attrition, supplier instability and market contraction, which are the same operational vulnerabilities that climate events create. Global Black maternal health sits at the intersection of public health, human capital and economic growth. Foreign assistance typically represents approximately only 1 percent of the US' federal budget but saves countless lives around the world. A half a billion dollars is budget dust on Capitol Hill, yet it equals the annual obstetric supply bill for dozens of third-world countries. To cut it is to leave the world's most vulnerable mothers paying the price for a political compromise they never made.
Zawya
5 days ago
- Health
- Zawya
Health leaders to convene in Mozambique for innovation and action for immunization and child survival forum 2025
Global health leaders, policymakers, philanthropists, researchers, and advocates will gather in Maputo from 22–24 July 2025 for the Innovation and Action for Immunization and Child Survival Forum 2025 ( This is a high-level convening aimed at accelerating progress toward expanding access to life-saving immunization and ending preventable child deaths across sub-Saharan Africa. D o wnl o ad d o cument: Hosted by the Governments of Mozambique and Sierra Leone, and in partnership with the Government of Spain, 'la Caixa' Foundation, the Gates Foundation and UNICEF, the forum comes just five years to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 deadline. 'Mozambique is proud to host this critical gathering, at a time when the world is at a crossroads,' said Hon. Dr. Ussene Isse, Minister of Health of Mozambique. 'Despite the unacceptable reality that we lose millions of children globally to preventable diseases each year, the rate of progress in reducing these deaths has slowed in the past 10 years, precisely when we need to accelerate. The decisions we make now will determine whether we keep our promise to every child to survive, to thrive, and to reach their fifth birthday. We must act boldly, together, and without delay.' A Defining Moment for Child Survival Incredible progress has reduced the number of deaths of children under the age of five by half since 2000. Yet today, almost five million children are still dying from preventable causes each year—58% of them in Sub-Saharan Africa. Preventable infectious diseases like pneumonia, malaria, diarrhea, and meningitis remain the global leading causes of death among children under five, while malnutrition contributes to 45% of all child deaths globally. 'We cannot afford to let progress stall. We have a golden opportunity to dramatically expand our impact through bold leadership, sustainable financing, and coordinated strategies and alignment to reach the most vulnerable populations,' said Hon. Dr. Austin Demby, Minister of Health, Sierra Leone. 'Breakthrough innovations like malaria vaccines, point of care tests, and ready-to-use therapeutic foods formulated to address malnutrition are improving our capacity to save young lives and prevent childhood deaths. At the same time, by weaving these innovations into our Life Stages Approach, we make sure every child receives the right intervention at the right time, whether it is a vaccine at birth, nutrition support during a growth setback, or follow-up care through the continuum of care as they grow; ensuring no child or opportunity is missed.' The convening will spotlight ongoing record levels of global funding cuts to public health programmes, including immunization. With increasing budgetary pressure within low- and middle-income countries and little room to immediately raise domestic and philanthropic funding to plug these gaps, the impact of these cuts is even more acute, especially in fragile and conflict-affected settings where children are nearly three times more likely to die before reaching age five. 'This forum will be another milestone in our collective effort to build a world where every child gets to grow up and thrive. It's a unique opportunity to continue fighting inequalities for the most vulnerable populations, always aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals and the Agenda 2030,' said H.R.H. Infanta Cristina, Director of the International Area at the 'la Caixa' Foundation. Mapping a Clear Path Forward The forum will offer a platform for stakeholders to share best practices, explore how to scale up innovations, diagnostic tools and nutrition solutions to reach all children, especially the most vulnerable in conflict-afflicted and climate-impacted settings. Speakers will also emphasize strengthening service delivery through integrated child health platforms, community health worker programs and digital tools, as well as building sustainable financing by mobilizing domestic resources, pooling international aid, and exploring innovative financing mechanisms. 'Every child deserves the chance to grow up healthy and thrive. Thanks to proven solutions and innovative care, we've made remarkable progress in helping more children survive their earliest, most vulnerable years. By investing in strong, integrated primary health-care systems and reaching every child with life-saving care—no matter who they are or where they live—we can save millions more young lives and build stronger families, communities, and futures," said Dr. Yasmin Ali Haque, Director of Health, UNICEF. The convening will build on the momentum of the 2020 and 2023 Global Fora on Childhood Pneumonia ( to foster impactful partnerships, strengthen political will and mobilize Africa's political and public health leaders to ensure all children are protected against the leading threats to their survival. "Despite remarkable progress, millions of children remain unreached, lacking access to vaccines or treatments for preventable diseases. This forum is a rallying cry for Africa and the world, because the final chapter in the global fight for child survival will be written on this continent. We must protect our children with the tools we have, invest in the innovations we need, and ensure no child is left behind," said Keith Klugman, Director, Pneumonia and Pandemic Preparedness, Gates Foundation. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Innovation and Action for Immunization and Child Survival Forum 2025. For interview requests, please contact: - For Mozambique-based media wgaitho@ and wkariuki@ - For regional and international media About the Innovation and Action for Immunization and Child Survival Forum 2025: The Innovation and Action for Immunization and Child Survival Forum 2025 will bring together stakeholders across selected countries in sub-Saharan Africa and other regions including senior health ministry officials, development agencies, donors, academia, civil society, and the private sector. Accordingly, it will focus on new and underutilized tools to deliver progress on child survival, more effective infectious disease risk mitigation and surveillance strategies, more efficient models of service delivery, the need for robust prioritization exercises including for routine immunization systems and new vaccine introductions, and innovative child survival financing options. For more information on the forum agenda, visit:
