Global Health
Even with so many important health challenges here at home, it's important not to forget the large-scale issues plaguing the globe.
The term "global health" refers to health problems that transcend national borders. These problems include infectious and insect-borne diseases that spread from one country to another. Recent outbreaks of SARS and drug-resistant forms of TB confirm that infectious diseases are just a plane ride away. Global health also includes health problems that are of such magnitude that they have a global impact, meaning that they affect us here in the United States too.
Infectious diseases claim millions of lives every year, particularly children. Infectious diseases like malaria and tuberculosis are often referred to as "diseases of the poor." While cases do occur in the U.S. and other rich countries, poorer countries suffer a disproportionate share of the burden.
We need to meet the challenge and lead the world in addressing global health issues. When the United States invests in improving global health, it is more than a humanitarian cause. It is an investment in our own health, and our own future.
Families USA regards global health as so crucial to its mission that it's made global health a top advocacy issue.
Fast Facts about global health:
- Last year alone: 2.5 million people became infected with HIV, 8.8 million suffered from tuberculosis, and 1 million people, primarily children under five, died from malaria.
- 1 billion people: that's 1 in 6 worldwide - suffer from "neglected tropical diseases," which cause severe disfigurement and debilitation.
- Global solutions: Global health challenges require co-operative solutions; cooperation across countries is essential to addressing those health problems that transcend borders.
- Business Incentives: When the health of developing nations improves, we in the United States are all the better for it. Consider this: 45 percent of our exports are purchased by developing countries. Better global health means more robust economies abroad, and more trade and investment opportunities for our businesses.
- Lack of research: Because these diseases mostly plague the poor who cannot afford expensive drugs, pharmaceutical companies have not had an incentive to develop drugs to prevent or treat most of these diseases. For example, between 1975 and 2004, 1,556 new drugs were developed; of these, 10 percent (179) of the drugs were for cardiovascular disease, while only 1 percent (21 drugs) were for tuberculosis and tropical diseases.
- Need for innovation: For many global health challenges, the available medical tools are old and ineffective, or simply do not exist. For others, there's a risk that treatments may become ineffective because of rapidly increasing drug-resistance.
Foreign policy priority: The United States can choose foreign policies that make it a priority to reduce or eliminate threats to global health.
Tools here at home: The United States is home to the world's premiere institutions for biomedical research and public health protection, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). With sufficient funding for medical research conducted at these agencies, we can make significant strides in the quest for effective vaccines and drugs.
Click here to learn more about global health and Families USA's Global Health Initiative.
