Posts Tagged ‘malaria’

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Modest Increases Proposed for U.S. Global Health Program Funding

February 15th, 2011

Yesterday, the Obama administration released its budget request for fiscal year 2012. The Administration is proposing a 2% increase towards the Global Health Initiative (GHI), raising their U.S. investment to $9.8 billion. However, despite these increases, John Cohen of ScienceMag posts about the injurious nature of the proposed cuts by the House of Representatives.

“The continuing resolution reductions introduced by the chair of the appropriations committee, Representative Hal Rogers (R-KY), would cut $783.5 million from the main component of GHI, the Global Health and Child Survival effort, which supports treatment and prevention programs for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), family planning, and nutrition efforts. The continuing resolution would take away another $300 million in contributions to the Global Fund.”

Deep cuts in funding will have a pernicious impact on NTD research and resource mobilization. The FY2010 budget appropriated only $65 million for NTDs. While Obama’s proposed FY11 budget promised to raise that amount to $155 million, the proposed FY12 budget would drop that amount to $100 million. Peter Hotez , President of the Sabin Vaccine Institute, specializes in vaccine development for NTDs. Dr.Hotez expresses that “[NTD control is] such a good buy for public health,” emphasizing that increasing GHI funds would further the United State’s efforts to expand NTD control and elimination programs past the dozen countries the U.S now helps.

The proposed House cuts will be extremely harmful to the well-being of global health. Millions of people would die from preventable diseases due to lack of treatment and access to drugs. According to Helene Gayle, head of CARE USA, “such drastic cuts in GHI funding will contribute to pushing more people around the world in poverty this year, with Africa expected to be the hardest hit.”

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Posted in Global Development, Global Health, NTDs, Obama Administration, policy, Politics, poverty, U.S Government

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Ending the neglect

January 28th, 2011

UK-based journalist Emilie Filou (who recently authored this great article on Trachoma), writes about neglected tropical diseases again for This is Africa. The article also features snippets from interviews Filou conducted with Dr. Neeraj Mistry, Managing Director of the Global Network, and Dr. Peter Hotez. The piece discusses the role of pharmaceuticals in NTD control, the importance of integration across other disease and issue areas and elimination goals.

From the article:

“The term ‘other disease’ has been a great frustration,” says Dr Peter Hotez, president of the Sabin Vaccine Institute and an expert on NTDs. “It’s quite clear that you won’t get Bono or Angelina Jolie to help out with ‘other diseases’. That’s what spurred us to call them Neglected Tropical Diseases as a group. It’s not the greatest of names, but it will help galvanise awareness,” he says.

Advocacy group The Global Network for NTDs is now lobbying to include NTDs under the remit of The Global Fund, Pepfar or the President’s Malaria Initiative. “We have new data coming out of Zimbabwe that shows that women infected with schistosomiasis are three times more likely to be infected with HIV,” explains Dr Neeraj Mistry, managing director of the Global Network.

“Treating schistosomiasis therefore becomes an intervention for HIV control; it’s those links we need to make to justify the inclusion of NTDs in global health efforts.”

There are many more such synergies: HIV-positive individuals have seen a decrease in their viral load when de-wormed; lymphatic filariasis is transmitted by mosquitoes, so the use of bednets, widely distributed for malaria control, is an efficient prevention measure.

Dr Mistry says that including NTDs in the Global Fund would only increase their budget marginally, but substantially increase their impact. “It costs as little $0.5 per year to treat an individual against NTDs. Compare that with the $100 it costs to treat someone with HIV, or the $35 the average African family spends on malaria control. In terms of investment, you won’t find a better return in health.”

To read the full article click here

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Posted in Africa, Global Development, Global Health, malaria, NTDs, Public Health, Tuberculosis

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Payne, Fortenberry to Co-Chair Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases Caucus

January 11th, 2011

The following announcement was just released by Representative Donald Payne of New Jersey and Representative Jeff Fortenberry of Nebraska. We welcome Representative Fortenberry’s leadership in co-chairing  the Malaria and Neglected Tropical Disease Caucus and look forward to continuing to work on joint, cost-effective solutions to build on the successes we’ve already seen:

WASHINGTON, D.C.— Congressmen Donald M. Payne (D-NJ) and Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE) today announced that they will serve  as co-chairmen of the bipartisan  Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases Caucus, formerly the Congressional Malaria Caucus, for the 112th Congress.

The Congressional Malaria Caucus was launched by Payne and former Rep. John Boozman (R-AR), with the assistance of former First Lady Laura Bush, in 2008 to raise Congressional awareness of the United States’ efforts to stem the tide of malaria across the globe.  In 2009, the Caucus expanded to include within its mission neglected tropical disease (NTD) control and prevention.

“Malaria kills as many as three million people each year, and NTDs affect more than one billion people worldwide,” said Fortenberry.  “Every 45 seconds, a child in Africa dies from malaria.  Every day, countless children are left disfigured, blinded, developmentally debilitated, and killed by NTDs.   These diseases form a heartbreaking global health emergency.  As the United States’ own public health experience has demonstrated, diseases like malaria are treatable, preventable, and curable.  I share the Caucus’ goal of ending malaria deaths by 2015, and working to curb the spread of NTDs among our world’s most vulnerable.”

“In a time of crucial discussions about U.S. foreign assistance reform, malaria and NTD control and prevention represent some of the strongest returns on investment for foreign assistance dollars,” said Payne. “Over the last few years, through proven, effective and low-cost control interventions, the United States, along with our global partners, has been able to slash malaria disease burdens and deaths in Africa and elsewhere around the world.  The strong connection between malaria and NTDs results in synergistic solutions and joint prevention campaigns for the deceases have proven highly effective and low-cost.  I look forward to working with Mr. Fortenberry to continue to build on these successes. ”

Malaria, an infectious blood disease spread by mosquitoes, is most prevalent in the developing world, with 90 percent of deaths occurring in Africa.  The majority of those killed are pregnant women and children under five years old.

More than one-sixth of the world’s population is infected by NTDs, particularly in the most impoverished areas of Latin America and Africa.  Most NTDs are preventable and treatable parasitic infectious diseases spread by insects or contaminated soil and water, particularly in tropical climates.

Fortenberry is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health and Human Rights.  Payne is the co-founder of the Caucus and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee.

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Posted in Latin America and the Caribbean, malaria, NTDs, policy

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More from the 2010 World Malaria Report

December 20th, 2010

By: Mark Green, Malaria No More

The World Health Organization’s 2010 World Malaria Report confirms the simple truth that gets me out of bed every morning and into work as a malaria advocate: while malaria is still a terrible killer, it is also completely preventable and treatable.

This year’s World Malaria Report shows that cases of malaria declined by 18 million and deaths caused by malaria declined by 82,000 worldwide. In 2009, there were 243 million cases of malaria, and malaria caused 781,000 deaths. That’s a drop in malaria deaths of nearly 10% in just one year. Now that’s something worth celebrating!

The idea of ending malaria deaths — of breaking the disease’s death grip in too many parts of Africa – is no longer a pipe dream.

But to get there, progress must be accelerated. Without sustained funding, all of the gains we have achieved could be lost. The news today brings much hope, but of course there’s so much work yet to be done. It is a tragedy that three-quarters of a million people die from a disease that is entirely preventable and treatable. This is a crisis that we know how to solve, but we must have the will.

People ask me all the time if the money we spend in Africa is making any difference at all. They see the images of malnourished children and hear the stories of conflict and corruption.

This year’s report gives us evidence that it is, but behind all of these stats are countless stories of individuals persevering in the face of malaria. These stories would not be possible without leadership and resources from all corners of the globe. This report demonstrates just how many of these new success stories are being written.

Mark Green serves as the Malaria Policy Center’s Managing Director. Mark Green joined the Malaria Policy Center after his tenure as United States Ambassador to the United Republic of Tanzania.  Prior to serving as ambassador, Mark served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was a member of the House Judiciary and International Relations Committees, and served as an Assistant Majority Whip. He has also written for End the Neglect in the past.

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Posted in malaria

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