While substantial progress has been made in driving down the global burden of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), trends are “uneven and fragile”, and several diseases are off course to meet 2030 targets. This is according to the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Global Report on Neglected Tropical Diseases 2026, a mid-term evaluation of the 2021-2030 road […] Continue reading ->
France’s Ambassador for Global Health, Dr Anne-Claire Amprou, is joining the leadership of the World Health Organization (WHO) body negotiating the missing piece of the Pandemic Agreement at a crucial moment. Amprou co-chaired the last stage of Pandemic Agreement talks, which eventually found consensus. However, consensus has eluded WHO member states on the pathogen access […] Continue reading ->
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first generic version of lenacapavir, the highly effective twice-yearly injection to prevent HIV, developed by Dr Reddy’s Laboratories based in India. Dr Reddy’s was one of six pharmaceutical manufacturers that was granted a non-exclusive, royalty-free voluntary licensing agreement from Gilead, which developed lenacapavir. The agreement, […] Continue reading ->
Cuts to Medicaid, the health services for low-income Americans, and fewer childhood immunisations – alongside persistent insinuations that vaccines are unsafe – are the most significant health policy changes made by the Trump administration since January 2025. They have been accompanied by reduced food support for low-income families, purges of scientists, and slashed research budgets. […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC), its highest alarm level, twice within two years, in 2022 and 2024. But “preventable health emergencies are a sign of failure”, said Helen Clark, co-chair of the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response. “They happen when community health care […] Continue reading ->
The UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board (PCB) has rejected the proposal by the United Nations Secretary-General that it is “sunsetted” by the end of this year, opting instead to transform into a smaller “hub”. This emerged after the PCB’s special meeting on Monday, which considered a report by a working group on the body’s future. The […] Continue reading ->
Nigeria’s first Ebola Bundibugyo patient may have crossed paths with Kenya’s recently deceased index patient at Uganda’s Entebbe Airport on 3 October, according to Dr Wessam Mankoula, head of health emergencies at Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Mankoula told a media briefing on Thursday that this was one of the possibilities being […] Continue reading ->
Political opposition to sexual and reproductive health services and LGBT rights is becoming well organised – and researchers argue that its targets are central to an autocratic reorganising of society, not simply ‘culture war’ casualties. It has become customary for conservative member states to object to even cursory references to sexual and reproductive health (SRH), […] Continue reading ->
Nigeria’s lone Ebola patient was only diagnosed almost two weeks after showing symptoms – and is reported to have travelled to the capital, Abuja, from Uganda. She entered Nigeria on October 3rd, started showing symptoms on October 7th and was admitted to hospital two days later – but was only diagnosed on Tuesday (20 October), […] Continue reading ->
In the face of dwindling health budgets, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) expert committee on immunisation has made several suggestions to enable countries to optimise existing vaccine supplies. Countries can continue giving a single dose of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to girls aged 9-14 years to prevent cervical cancer – instead of two doses, […] Continue reading ->