Global Health

The World Health Organization (WHO) has released the full edition of its guideline on balanced national controlled medicines policies, the first comprehensive global framework aimed at ensuring access to controlled substances for medical and scientific purposes, while reducing the risks of misuse and diversion. This follows an initial rapid communication presented at the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly, which introduced the guideline. Controlled medicines such as opioids, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, and amphetamines are vital for pain relief, surgery, seizure management, palliative care, and the treatment of mental health and substance use disorders. Yet, millions of patients around the world remain unable to obtain them. WHO estimates that up to 98% of patients in low-income...

GHealth News - On 25 June 2025, the European Union and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation co-hosted the Gavi 6.0 High-Level Pledging Summit in Brussels, with strong backing from Gavi donors and implementing countries. The event gathered global leaders from governments, international organisations, vaccine manufacturers, civil society, and the private sector to secure funding for global immunisation efforts. The summit raised over €7.7 billion in pledges toward Gavi’s €10.2 billion target for 2026–2030. Team Europe composed of the EU and its Member States reaffirmed its leadership role with a collective pledge exceeding €2 billion, including €360 million from the European Commission. In addition to donor pledges, the summit secured: €3.8 billion in complementary financing fro...

by Alice Park - Time Magazine So far, 2025 has been a terrible year for global health. The Trump Administration is slashing funding to a number of international programs; closing down USAID, the government’s major aid development arm; and withdrawing U.S. membership from the World Health Organization. But a glimmer of hope arrived on May 8, when Bill Gates, chair of the Gates Foundation, announced that he will be infusing the struggling field with most of his fortune—$200 billion, which he built after creating Microsoft—to be spent by 2045. He also plans to close down the foundation at that time. Since Gates and his former wife, Melinda French Gates, created the foundation 25 years ago, the organization has contributed more than $100 billion to global causes, primar...

GHealth News - The World Health Summit (WHS) Regional Meeting 2025 is currently taking place in New Delhi, India, from April 25 to 27, marking a historic milestone as India hosts this prestigious gathering for the first time. Organized under the overarching theme "Scaling Access to Ensure Health Equity," the summit aims to foster international dialogue and cooperation to address some of the most pressing challenges in global health today. The WHS Regional Meeting 2025 brings together over 400 leaders from academia, politics, the private sector, and civil society, representing more than 100 countries. With the goal of advancing health as a fundamental human right, the discussions center around creating sustainable health systems, promoting innovation, and ensuring equitable access to hea...

GHealth News - The World Health Organization (WHO) has finalized the text of a legally binding treaty aimed at strengthening global preparedness and coordination for future pandemics. This agreement, years in the making, seeks to prevent the kind of disorganized global response seen during the COVID-19 crisis. Key points of the treaty include: Faster sharing of disease data to help speed up the development of vaccines and treatments. WHO oversight of global PPE supply chains to improve distribution during crises. A requirement for pharmaceutical companies to reserve 20% of pandemic-related products, 10% donated to WHO and 10% sold at affordable rates. Voluntary technology sharing with low-income countries to support local vaccine and drug production. A new system, the Pa...

GHealth News - The World Health Organization (WHO) is close to finalizing a legally binding treaty aimed at improving global preparedness for future pandemics. After three years of intense negotiations sparked by the COVID-19 crisis, most of the treaty has been agreed upon, with only a few critical issues remaining. Talks in Geneva ran overnight but were paused until Tuesday to resolve final disagreements. The United States withdrew from the discussions earlier this year under President Donald Trump, but the remaining 192 member states may choose to ratify the treaty once adopted. A major point of contention remains the fair distribution of vaccines and medicines, especially between wealthy and developing countries. The treaty has faced opposition from right-wing critics who argue it...

GHealth News - The World Health Organization (WHO) launches the Healthy Beginnings, Hopeful Futures campaign on World Health Day 2025, April 7, focusing on maternal and newborn health. The campaign aims to reduce preventable deaths, improve long-term health for women, and raise awareness about gaps in maternal and newborn survival. With nearly 300,000 maternal deaths and over 4 million newborn deaths annually, urgent action is needed. WHO encourages collective action, investments in healthcare, and better support for families, addressing both physical and emotional health needs. People are urged to spread awareness, participate in global events, donate, and share personal stories. Campaign goals To raise awareness about gaps in maternal and newborn survival and the need to prioritiz...

By: Rachel Tompa When it comes to widespread global health problems, ChatGPT and its like may not be the first solution that comes to your mind. But generative AI, the type of large language model that underlies artificial intelligence chatbots like ChatGPT, could have a lot to offer in low- and middle-income countries where access to reliable health care remains a hurdle for many. Eleni Linos, MD, DrPH, the director of the Stanford Center for Digital Health, spends a lot of time thinking about how digital tools including generative AI could tackle health problems that humans haven't been able to solve. Recently, Linos and her research team at the center co-authored a report on generative AI's application for health in low- and middle-income countries in collab...