Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report—Programs, Funding & Financing

Ugandan Government Announces $3M Plan To Fight Nodding Disease

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 14:29:46 GMT

"The growing threat of nodding disease and increased pressure for action has spurred the Ugandan government to announce a $3 million (USD) plan to address the mystery illness," Global Health Frontline News reports, adding, "Initial funds will be used to set up screening centers and treat those affected in Pader, Kitgum, and Lamwo districts in northern Uganda as early as this month."

Aid For Water, Sanitation Programs Must Benefit The Poor

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:06:13 GMT

In this post in the ONE blog, Brooks Keene, policy adviser for CARE's water team, "makes the argument that foreign aid should benefit the poor first and foremost," noting, "As we approach World Water Day on March 22, CARE, [the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)] and WaterAid have published a report card [.pdf] on how well" the Water for the Poor Act, passed by Congress in 2005, "has been implemented seven years down the line." She writes, "In the absence of a strategy, USAID has gone ahead with water, sanitation and hygiene programs, but much of the effort and dollars have not gone to benefit the poor." She concludes by recommending several steps USAID could take "to spur concerted targeting" (2/9).

Grand Challenges Canada, Gates Foundation Announce Grants For Innovative Global Health Projects

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

"Grand Challenges Canada [on Thursday] announced 15 grants valued in total at more than $1.5 million awarded to some of Canada's most creative innovators from across the country in support of their work to improve global health conditions," according to a press release from the Sandra Rotman Centre for Global Health, which hosts Grand Challenges (2/9). "The grants are meant to fund ideas such as a simply designed, inexpensive prosthetic leg and a test for pneumonia that can be done on a cellphone in poor countries with few resources," CBC News notes (Dakin, 2/9). The press release lists the grantees, briefly describes their innovations and provides a link to access two-minute videos created by each grantee to explain his or her proposal (2/9).

Donor Fatigue, Funding Cutbacks Could Mean Another 50 Years Of AIDS Epidemic, UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director Says

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 14:45:27 GMT

"With enough money spent in the right way, the world could soon reduce new HIV infections to zero, but global apathy and the financial crisis mean it might take another 50 years to stop the AIDS epidemic, a U.N. expert has said," AlertNet reports. "At a time when HIV/AIDS efforts face an unprecedented decline in funding, Paul De Lay, deputy executive director of UNAIDS ..., called on developing states to take more responsibility for tackling HIV in their own countries rather than relying on international assistance," the news service notes.

Quantifying The Quality Of Health Aid

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:09:47 GMT

In this post on the Center for Global Development's (CGD) "Global Health Policy" blog, Amanda Glassman, director of global health policy and a research fellow at CGD, and Denizhan Duran, a research assistant in global health policy at CGD, describe a paper they wrote in which they try to determine "[w]hich donor provides the 'best' health aid, and why [this is] a relevant question." They write, "To be honest, one working paper later, we still do not have a definite answer to either question," but "we do know ... that health aid is relevant: effective health aid has saved lives, and technologies like oral rehydration salts and vaccination are among the most efficient development interventions money can buy." The authors say they "rank donors across four dimensions of aid effectiveness: maximizing efficiency, fostering institutions, reducing burden and transparency and learning," and invite readers to explore their data.

WFP, FAO Warn Food Security Worsening For Millions In South Sudan, Call For Action

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:03:28 GMT

The U.N.'s World Food Programme (WFP) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) "warned [Wednesday] that millions of people in South Sudan are facing worsening hunger and called for urgent action to improve food security through adequate food aid and projects to boost agricultural production," the U.N. News Centre reports (2/8). "[C]onflict, population displacement and high food prices" are threatening food security for 4.7 million in the new nation this year, up from 3.3 million in 2011, according to a report (.pdf) from the agencies, Reuters notes. "Of those, about one million people are severely food insecure, and that number could double if fighting continues and prices keep rising, the report said," the news agency writes (2/8).

Study Investigates Concept Of 'Additionality' In Domestic Health Spending Amid Foreign Donations

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:39:50 GMT

In this study published in Health Affairs this month, researchers investigated the concept known as "additionality," where donor nations and philanthropic organizations "require that funds provided for a specific health priority such as HIV should supplement domestic spending on that priority." Using data from Honduras, Rwanda, and Thailand, the authors found that "the three countries increased funding for HIV in response to increased donor funding" and "suggest that it would be preferable for donors and countries to agree on how best to use available domestic and external funds to improve population health, and to develop better means of tracking outcomes, than to try to develop more sophisticated methods to track additionality" (February 2012).

India's Proposed Food Security Program Will Face Infrastructure Challenges, Farm Minister Says

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:32:44 GMT

"India's plan to roll out an ambitious food security program to give cheap foodgrains to the poor and malnourished won't succeed unless the government revamps a creaky distribution network and boosts other infrastructure such as storage and transport, Farm Minister Sharad Pawar said Wednesday," the Wall Street Journal reports.

Eye Clinics In India Use Tiered Pricing To Provide Affordable Service To Poorest Patients

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:26:44 GMT

"An expanding network of eye clinics has found an innovative way of providing quality, affordable treatment to millions of blind and visually impaired poor people in India," the Guardian's "Poverty Matters" blog reports. The LV Prasad Eye Institute (LVPEI), a not-for-profit organization that runs a chain of 82 eye care centers and a research institute in India, uses tiered pricing to charge wealthier patients for treatment, allowing the group to provide free treatment to poorer patients.

Debate Continues Over Needle/Syringe Exchange Programs

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:55:00 GMT

Matt Fisher, a research assistant at the Center for Strategic & International Studies' Global Health Policy Center, summarizes the ongoing debate in Congress over needle and syringe exchange programs (NSEPs) in this post on the SmartGlobalHealth.org blog. He presents a history of NSEPs and notes, "President Obama recently signed the FY12 omnibus spending bill that, among other things, reinstated the ban on the use of federal funds for needle and syringe exchange programs (NSEPs); this step reversed the 111th Congress' 2009 decision to allow federal funds to be used for these programs." He concludes that despite scientific evidence that NSEPs are an effective public health intervention, "ideological and moral opposition remains," and therefore, "the issue of federal funding will continue to be actively debated" (2/6).

Economic Transformation In Latin America An Opportunity To Improve NTD Strategies, DNDi Regional Director Says

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:56:00 GMT

"The rise of emerging economies in Latin America is an opportunity to improve strategies for fighting neglected illnesses and increase the region's contribution to the global struggle against them, says" Eric Stobbaerts, the Latin America director of the independent Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), Inter Press Service reports. "Our region is going through a major transformation in economic and social terms," Stobbaerts told IPS after a meeting on "Uniting to Combat Neglected Tropical Diseases" (NTDs) held in London on January 30, "mentioning the progress that has been made in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile and Mexico," IPS writes.

Republican Win In 2012 Election Could Spell End Of International Family Planning Programs

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:15:00 GMT

"If a Republican becomes president, ... say goodbye to international programs providing birth control to women in desperately poor countries such as Liberia," senior contributing writer Michelle Goldberg writes in this Daily Beast opinion piece. Goldberg notes that birth control has become a "significant issue in the U.S. presidential campaign," writing, "All of the Republican candidates have slammed the administration's refusal to give religious institutions a broad exemption from the mandate that insurance cover family planning."

DRC Facing Decline In Donor Funding, HIV Treatment Shortage

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:37:00 GMT

"The lives of thousands of HIV-positive people in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are at risk as the country faces declining donor funding and a severe shortage of HIV treatment, according to Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF)," PlusNews reports. "'The problem is quite old in the DRC; the country has always been minimized by donors who have not seen it as a priority, mainly because HIV prevalence is relatively low at between three and four percent,' Thierry Dethier, advocacy manager for MSF Belgium in the DRC, told IRIN/PlusNews," and he added, "But look at the indicators: more than one million people are living with HIV, 350,000 of whom qualify for [antiretrovirals (ARVs)] but only 44,000 -- or 15 percent -- are on ARVs," the news service writes.

Presentation Highlights Contributions Of FBOs To Global Health

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:02:00 GMT

This post on the Center for Strategic & International Studies' "Smart Global Health" blog reports on a presentation hosted by the Global Health Policy Center on Monday which "highlight[ed] the contributions faith-based-organizations (FBOs) make to global health, including the fight against HIV/AIDS." The post highlights quotes from several speakers at the event, provides audio footage of the event, and links to podcast interviews with Kay Warren, founder of the HIV/AIDS Initiative at Saddleback Church, and Ken Hackett, president of Catholic Relief Services (1/31).

Knowledge, Resources Exist To Reach Maternal, Child Mortality MDGs In Africa With Unified Efforts

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:00:11 GMT

In this Global Health and Diplomacy opinion piece, Tanzanian President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete examines efforts to meet Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets on maternal and child mortality in Africa, noting, "Although Africa has just 12 percent of the global population, it accounts for half of all maternal deaths and half the deaths of children under five." He writes, "Though global maternal deaths are in decline and women's health has at last become a global priority, our goal of reducing maternal mortality by 75 percent in 2015 is still a long way off. ... It is unacceptable to allow mothers and children to die when we have the knowledge and resources to save them."

Ensure Future For Global Fund Or 'Forfeit' Chance At 'AIDS-Free Generation'

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:57:07 GMT

In this New York Times opinion piece, Paul Farmer, chair of the department of global health and social medicine at Harvard Medical School and a co-founder of Partners in Health, examines the importance of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria as it faces a "serious financial shortfall," writing, "Beyond AIDS, the Global Fund is currently the largest donor in the world for tuberculosis and malaria programs. ... The question is not whether the Global Fund works, but how to ensure it keeps working for years to come."

Media Outlets Examine Global Fund's Future As It Enters Second Decade

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:48:00 GMT

The Guardian examines the future of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria as it enters its second decade, writing, "Despite its staggering successes -- including helping put 3.3 million people on AIDS treatment, 8.6 million on anti-tuberculosis treatment and providing 230 million insecticide-treated nets for the prevention of malaria -- the fund's recent troubles had threatened to overshadow its accomplishments as it prepared to mark a decade as the world's main financier of programs to fight these three global epidemics." The news service highlights a $750 million pledge to the Fund by Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, discusses recent managerial changes within the Fund, and quotes a number of experts about future challenges (Kelly, 2/2).

Rethinking Government Approach To GHI

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:25:47 GMT

In this post in the Center for Global Development's (CGD) "Rethinking U.S. Foreign Assistance" blog, Connie Veillette, director of CGD's rethinking U.S. foreign assistance initiative, highlights two recent posts by CGD's Amanda Glassman and Nandini Oomman on the future of the Global Health Initiative (GHI). She writes, "With the Appropriations Committee weighing in by requiring a status report by mid-February on transitioning GHI to USAID, it is no understatement that the GHI is at an important juncture. Declining budgets for foreign assistance will also require new thinking on where the U.S. provides assistance and for what purpose" (1/31).

Collapse Of Global Fund Would Stall Global Health Efforts

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:19:34 GMT

"The Global Fund's drive to ensure sustainability and efficiency means that it may not be able to meet its commitments to combat disease, says Laurie Garrett," a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, in Nature's "World View" column. Citing his resignation letter, Garrett discusses the "the political struggle" that led Michel Kazatchkine to step down as executive director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria last week and writes, "It is a classic battle of titans, pitting urgency against long-term sustainability. ... Kazatchkine essentially conceded victory to the forces for sustainability."

Opinion Pieces Recognize Global Fund Anniversary

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 14:40:00 GMT

Last week, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria celebrated its 10-year anniversary. The following are summaries of two opinion pieces written in recognition of this milestone.