Opinion Pieces Discuss U.S., WHO Responses To Zika February 25, 2016 News Summary The Hill: Zika, Ebola, other public health crises — we need a better plan Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) “…The U.S. and our global partners should adopt a two-tiered preparedness strategy [for disease outbreaks]: proactive research and reactionary response. Predictive models of disease hotspots must be connected with travel patterns. This…
All Forms Of FGM Should Be Considered ‘Child Abuse’ February 25, 2016 News Summary The Guardian: There’s no such thing as ‘mild’ FGM. It’s still child abuse Celia Jeffreys, midwife and head of the National FGM Centre “…[T]his week two American gynecologists have written in the British Journal of Medical Ethics arguing that some ‘mild’ forms of [female genital mutilation (FGM)] should be legalized…
Stop TB Partnership, Pharmaceutical Company Announce New Initiative To Help Developing Countries Access Drug For MDR-TB February 25, 2016 News Summary Stop TB Partnership: Stop TB Partnership’s Global Drug Facility jumpstarts access to new drugs for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis with innovative public-private partnerships “A new initiative to enable developing countries to access delamanid — one of two new life-saving drugs approved to combat multidrug-resistant (MDR) tuberculosis (TB) — [was on Wednesday] announced…
Ebola, Zika Epidemics Highlight Needed Shift To More Open, Speedy Science Publishing February 25, 2016 News Summary BMJ Blogs: Liz Allen: How Ebola and Zika might help to open up science Liz Allen, director of strategic initiatives at F1000 and a visiting senior research fellow at the Policy Institute at Kings’ College London, discusses how the Ebola and Zika epidemics could serve as “catalysts” to open and…
‘Science Speaks’ Covers Issues Discussed At CROI 2016 February 25, 2016 News Summary The Center for Global Health Policy’s “Science Speaks” blog is covering a range of issues discussed at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI), taking place this week in Boston. “Science Speaks”: CROI 2016: Scale of Ebola crisis led to knowledge, new questions, ongoing research, and need for unprecedented…
U.N. Women Head Calls For Expanded Reproductive Rights In Latin America Amid Zika Outbreak; Debate Over Abortion Access Continues February 24, 2016 News Summary CNSNews.com: Head of U.N. Women: Expand ‘Reproductive Rights’ in Zika-Affected Countries ‘Not Only Because of Zika’ But It’s the ‘Right Thing to Do’ “U.N. Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of U.N. Women Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka told CNSNews.com Tuesday that ‘reproductive rights’ of women in countries affected by the Zika virus must be…
U.S. House Democratic Whip Hoyer Calls On Republicans To Allocate Separate Zika Funds February 24, 2016 News Summary The Hill: Hoyer blasts GOP plan to use Ebola cash in Zika fight “The second-ranking House Democrat on Tuesday went after the Republicans’ plan to tap Ebola funds to fight the Zika virus. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), the Democratic whip, said the continuing threat posed by Ebola means Congress should…
WHO’s Chan Warns Zika Response Will Be ‘Long Journey,’ Meets With PAHO Head, Brazil President February 24, 2016 News Summary Agence France-Presse: Zika virus fight a ‘long journey’: WHO chief “The head of the World Health Organization warned Tuesday that the fight against Zika, a mosquito-transmitted virus linked to serious birth defects, will be long and complex…” (2/23). CIDRAP News: WHO, PAHO chiefs meet in Brazil over Zika “…Top officials…
U.S., Brazilian Teams Work To Research Microcephaly, Zika Link; Brazil Confirms More Cases Of Birth Defect February 24, 2016 News Summary Associated Press: Logistics cause delays on first day of Brazil Zika study “U.S. and Brazilian health workers seeking to determine if the Zika virus is causing a surge in birth defects ran into the chaotic reality of northeastern Brazil on their study’s first day Tuesday. Traffic and logistical problems shredded…