President Obama´s Global Health Initiatives will benefit developing countries most
Surya B. Prasai
July 20, 2009
On May 5, 2009, President Barak Obama introduced a new Global Health Plan which through a comprehensive package seeks to spend 65 billion dollars in the next half decade to fight deadly diseases in the poor developing world. President Obama´s plan which is called a "new comprehensive global health strategy" intends to increase much needed funding to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria with 366 million dollars, and other upcoming global health priorities with 100 million dollars, which includes reducing maternal and infant mortality rates as part of incremental increases up to 2014.
Before the current U.S. financial crisis, Congress had approved legislation which authorized 48 billion dollars to be spent over five years on the fight against AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis - a sharp increase in spending for former President George W. Bush's ground-breaking PEPFAR and President's Malaria Initiative (PMI) programs which had won global media praise.
But first, where does the world stand on fighting AIDS in 2009? Recently at the UNAIDS Program Coordinating Board meeting held in Geneva on June 24, 2009, Executive Director Michel Sidibé stated poignantly, "Today we meet at a crossroads: in this time of crisis, opportunities beckon, but transformation is called for. Two weeks ago, when Dr Margaret Chan, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), raised the influenza pandemic alert to Phase 6, an image came to mind. I saw the H1N1 virus escaping from Pandora´s box into a world already replete with crises: economic crisis, rising food prices, global warming, war. And all this against the backdrop of the AIDS pandemic that continues to kill two million people per year. Sometimes it´s hard not to despair. But then I remembered: in the Greek myth, when Pandora closed her box again, the only thing left inside it was hope." The fact is: in 2009, nearly 2 million people will continue to die due to the AIDS pandemic, while G-8 and the middle-income developing countries are trying to find a means to tie down the Millennium Development Goals´ priorities with overall development investment and economic reform amidst the prevailing global recession.
For his part, UNAIDS Executive Director Sidibé recently ascertained that with the cooperation and partnership of all those working with him, UNAIDS would live up to the leadership challenge. He has already asked UNAIDS to work on three result oriented fronts seeking: first, to increase results and their impact, second, to optimize and expand partnerships, and third, to transform UNAIDS into a more efficient and effective organization. However, according to various AIDS experts, this would imply a closer watch on global data banks and their effective usage in policy formulation, monitoring global program feedback, evaluating methods to ascertain driving factors behind the epidemic cognizant of the UN´s Millennium Development Goals, putting sustainable logistics in place to fight AIDS and related illnesses, and also teaming up for a joint strategy that would help achieve local public-private partnerships, including a mix of IT based global conferencing and correct usage of behavior change practices and interventions.
President Obama´s new six year global health strategy will help reshape one of the signature foreign policy efforts of his predecessor. President George W. Bush had made combating global AIDS a centerpiece of his foreign policy agenda which met with remarkable success and bipartisan support at home. The President´s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is still considered one of the most significant U.S. foreign policy and humanitarian achievements. President Obama´s plan seeks to envision a more far-reaching, cross-cutting approach on global health issues that would transcend AIDS and probe deeper into tropical diseases and other treatable and preventable illnesses that kill millions, many of whom happen to be children in the developing countries.
According to Bono, lead singer of the Irish rock group U2 and a prominent antipoverty advocate, " ´Doctor Obama´ leads the next chapter in the U.S. response to global health crises," in a statement released by One, the global anti-poverty advocacy group he founded. In President Obama´s own words, "In the 21st century, disease flows freely across borders and oceans, and, in recent days, the 2009 H1N1 virus has reminded us of the urgent need for action. We cannot wall ourselves off from the world and hope for the best, nor ignore the public health challenges beyond our borders. An outbreak in Indonesia can reach Indiana within days, and public health crises abroad can cause widespread suffering, conflict, and economic contraction".
President Obama recollected through the White House press statement released on May 5, 2009 that as a U.S. Senator, he had joined a bipartisan majority in supporting the Bush Administration´s effective President´s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) which provided lifesaving medicines and prevention efforts to millions of people living in some of the world´s most extreme conditions. The U.S. President recollected last summer, Congress had approved the Lantos-Hyde US Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS Act -- legislation that he was proud to cosponsor as a U.S. Senator and now carry out as President.
President Obama also stated that the U.S. cannot be successful in her efforts to end deaths from AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis unless more is done to improve health systems around the world, focus efforts on child and maternal health, and ensure that best practices drive the funding for these programs. Thus, the new Obama emphasis continues supporting the promise of PEPFAR while increasing and enhancing U.S. parallel health efforts to combat diseases that claim the lives of 26,000 children each day. President Obama´s states, "We cannot fix every problem. But we have a responsibility to protect the health of our people, while saving lives, reducing suffering, and supporting the health and dignity of people everywhere. America can make a significant difference in meeting these challenges, and that is why my Administration is committed to act."
According to the White House press room, the U.S. global health investment is an important component of the national security "smart power" strategy, where the power of America´s development tools -- especially proven, cost-effective health care initiatives -- can build the capacity of government institutions and reduce the risk of conflict before it gathers strength. In addition, it mentions, the Administration´s funding plan can leverage support from other nations and multilateral partners so that the world can come closer to achieving the health Millennium Development Goals. The U.S. has already started launching discussions with G-8 partners on fulfilling all of the commitments. Emphasis is being placed on how the new comprehensive global health approach can yield significant returns by investing in efforts to prevent millions of new HIV infections; reduce mortality of mothers and children under five, saving millions of lives; avert millions of unintended pregnancies; and, eliminating some neglected tropical diseases.
To add to the overall positive effort of the Obama administration, Eric Goosby, MD, has now assumed the role of Ambassador at Large and Global AIDS Coordinator effective April 2009 with the U.S. Department of State. In this role, Ambassador Goosby will lead all U.S. Government international HIV/AIDS efforts. oversee implementation of the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), as well as U.S. Government engagement with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Goosby is not new to Washington circles. As the first Director of the Ryan White Care Act at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, he helped develop HIV/AIDS delivery systems in the United States. Ambassador Goosby has over 25 years of experience with HIV/AIDS, ranging from his early years treating patients at San Francisco General Hospital when AIDS first emerged, to engagement at the highest level of policy leadership. His appointment comes at a time when there are still many significant global challenges when it comes to HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment.
All these U.S. efforts come amidst a global crisis—and it calls for winds of change and new global leadership, on how the world views and tackles disease, poverty, poor health and their underlying nexus to wars, famine and civil unrest in many developing countries. Meeting them is a top priority of the U.S. government as much as organizations such as UNAIDS facing so-called competing priorities and AIDS fatigue. The last positive word on AIDS in 2009 is that the world is now closer to achieving universal access by linking it with the world's most determined drive against poverty through the UN´s Millennium Development Goals launched by the visionary Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary General. According to UNAIDS, there is now a decline in new HIV infections from 3 million in 2001 to 2.7 million in 2007, there are one million more people on treatment in 2007, and, there are lesser infections from 2.2 million in 2005 to 2 million in 2007.
Before the current U.S. financial crisis, Congress had approved legislation which authorized 48 billion dollars to be spent over five years on the fight against AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis - a sharp increase in spending for former President George W. Bush's ground-breaking PEPFAR and President's Malaria Initiative (PMI) programs which had won global media praise.
But first, where does the world stand on fighting AIDS in 2009? Recently at the UNAIDS Program Coordinating Board meeting held in Geneva on June 24, 2009, Executive Director Michel Sidibé stated poignantly, "Today we meet at a crossroads: in this time of crisis, opportunities beckon, but transformation is called for. Two weeks ago, when Dr Margaret Chan, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), raised the influenza pandemic alert to Phase 6, an image came to mind. I saw the H1N1 virus escaping from Pandora´s box into a world already replete with crises: economic crisis, rising food prices, global warming, war. And all this against the backdrop of the AIDS pandemic that continues to kill two million people per year. Sometimes it´s hard not to despair. But then I remembered: in the Greek myth, when Pandora closed her box again, the only thing left inside it was hope." The fact is: in 2009, nearly 2 million people will continue to die due to the AIDS pandemic, while G-8 and the middle-income developing countries are trying to find a means to tie down the Millennium Development Goals´ priorities with overall development investment and economic reform amidst the prevailing global recession.
For his part, UNAIDS Executive Director Sidibé recently ascertained that with the cooperation and partnership of all those working with him, UNAIDS would live up to the leadership challenge. He has already asked UNAIDS to work on three result oriented fronts seeking: first, to increase results and their impact, second, to optimize and expand partnerships, and third, to transform UNAIDS into a more efficient and effective organization. However, according to various AIDS experts, this would imply a closer watch on global data banks and their effective usage in policy formulation, monitoring global program feedback, evaluating methods to ascertain driving factors behind the epidemic cognizant of the UN´s Millennium Development Goals, putting sustainable logistics in place to fight AIDS and related illnesses, and also teaming up for a joint strategy that would help achieve local public-private partnerships, including a mix of IT based global conferencing and correct usage of behavior change practices and interventions.
President Obama´s new six year global health strategy will help reshape one of the signature foreign policy efforts of his predecessor. President George W. Bush had made combating global AIDS a centerpiece of his foreign policy agenda which met with remarkable success and bipartisan support at home. The President´s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is still considered one of the most significant U.S. foreign policy and humanitarian achievements. President Obama´s plan seeks to envision a more far-reaching, cross-cutting approach on global health issues that would transcend AIDS and probe deeper into tropical diseases and other treatable and preventable illnesses that kill millions, many of whom happen to be children in the developing countries.
According to Bono, lead singer of the Irish rock group U2 and a prominent antipoverty advocate, " ´Doctor Obama´ leads the next chapter in the U.S. response to global health crises," in a statement released by One, the global anti-poverty advocacy group he founded. In President Obama´s own words, "In the 21st century, disease flows freely across borders and oceans, and, in recent days, the 2009 H1N1 virus has reminded us of the urgent need for action. We cannot wall ourselves off from the world and hope for the best, nor ignore the public health challenges beyond our borders. An outbreak in Indonesia can reach Indiana within days, and public health crises abroad can cause widespread suffering, conflict, and economic contraction".
President Obama recollected through the White House press statement released on May 5, 2009 that as a U.S. Senator, he had joined a bipartisan majority in supporting the Bush Administration´s effective President´s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) which provided lifesaving medicines and prevention efforts to millions of people living in some of the world´s most extreme conditions. The U.S. President recollected last summer, Congress had approved the Lantos-Hyde US Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS Act -- legislation that he was proud to cosponsor as a U.S. Senator and now carry out as President.
President Obama also stated that the U.S. cannot be successful in her efforts to end deaths from AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis unless more is done to improve health systems around the world, focus efforts on child and maternal health, and ensure that best practices drive the funding for these programs. Thus, the new Obama emphasis continues supporting the promise of PEPFAR while increasing and enhancing U.S. parallel health efforts to combat diseases that claim the lives of 26,000 children each day. President Obama´s states, "We cannot fix every problem. But we have a responsibility to protect the health of our people, while saving lives, reducing suffering, and supporting the health and dignity of people everywhere. America can make a significant difference in meeting these challenges, and that is why my Administration is committed to act."
According to the White House press room, the U.S. global health investment is an important component of the national security "smart power" strategy, where the power of America´s development tools -- especially proven, cost-effective health care initiatives -- can build the capacity of government institutions and reduce the risk of conflict before it gathers strength. In addition, it mentions, the Administration´s funding plan can leverage support from other nations and multilateral partners so that the world can come closer to achieving the health Millennium Development Goals. The U.S. has already started launching discussions with G-8 partners on fulfilling all of the commitments. Emphasis is being placed on how the new comprehensive global health approach can yield significant returns by investing in efforts to prevent millions of new HIV infections; reduce mortality of mothers and children under five, saving millions of lives; avert millions of unintended pregnancies; and, eliminating some neglected tropical diseases.
To add to the overall positive effort of the Obama administration, Eric Goosby, MD, has now assumed the role of Ambassador at Large and Global AIDS Coordinator effective April 2009 with the U.S. Department of State. In this role, Ambassador Goosby will lead all U.S. Government international HIV/AIDS efforts. oversee implementation of the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), as well as U.S. Government engagement with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Goosby is not new to Washington circles. As the first Director of the Ryan White Care Act at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, he helped develop HIV/AIDS delivery systems in the United States. Ambassador Goosby has over 25 years of experience with HIV/AIDS, ranging from his early years treating patients at San Francisco General Hospital when AIDS first emerged, to engagement at the highest level of policy leadership. His appointment comes at a time when there are still many significant global challenges when it comes to HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment.
All these U.S. efforts come amidst a global crisis—and it calls for winds of change and new global leadership, on how the world views and tackles disease, poverty, poor health and their underlying nexus to wars, famine and civil unrest in many developing countries. Meeting them is a top priority of the U.S. government as much as organizations such as UNAIDS facing so-called competing priorities and AIDS fatigue. The last positive word on AIDS in 2009 is that the world is now closer to achieving universal access by linking it with the world's most determined drive against poverty through the UN´s Millennium Development Goals launched by the visionary Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary General. According to UNAIDS, there is now a decline in new HIV infections from 3 million in 2001 to 2.7 million in 2007, there are one million more people on treatment in 2007, and, there are lesser infections from 2.2 million in 2005 to 2 million in 2007.
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