News: Announcement

WASHINGTON, DC – Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) introduced the Supporting Innovative Global Health Technologies (SIGHT) Act of 2024. The bill would empower the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to boost its research and development (R&D) capabilities for health care technologies in low- and middle-income countries abroad. This bill, S.5278, is a companion bill to H.R.6424, which was introduced in the House of Representatives last November by Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01), María Elvira Salazar (FL-27), and Chrissy Houlahan (PA-06)."We applaud Senator Booker for his leadership in advancing next-generation health innovations that are critical for tackling both known and emerging global health challenges by expanding the global health R&D ecosystem within the US government," said Dr. Kristie Mikus, Executive Director of the Global Health Technologies Coalition (GHTC), which represents 49 nonprofit organizations, academic institutions, and aligned businesses dedicated to advancing life-saving innovations globally. "With its extensive presence in low- and middle-income countries and its strong track record of fostering public-private partnerships, USAID is uniquely positioned to drive groundbreaking health innovation. It is encouraging to see congressional leaders in both the House and Senate recognize USAID's potential to embrace new disease-agnostic program areas that will complement the ongoing USAID R&D partnerships that have already been instrumental in saving millions of lives around the world."

The Global Health Technologies Coalitions (GHTC) welcomes the political declaration approved today by the United Nations (UN) High-Level Meeting on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) and applauds its commitments to promote the research and development (R&D) of and equitable access to antimicrobials, vaccines, diagnostics, and other products. GHTC especially appreciates the inclusion of concrete targets, such as the goal to reduce AMR deaths by 10 percent by 2030, the commitment to raise $100 million to support the implementation of national action plans against AMR, and support for important new mechanisms like the independent panel for evidence for action against AMR, which will help guide country action and provide both technical support and accountability. GHTC also commends the text’s robust R&D language, which includes many provisions for which GHTC has advocated, such as recognition of the need for stronger local and regional manufacturing capacities and the importance of public-private partnerships (including explicit mentions of our members the Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator and the Global Antibiotic Research & Development Partnership), and calls for stronger regional coordination of the licensing and registration of medical products and the use of push and pull incentives.   While GHTC welcomes the strong R&D focus in the political declaration, we believe that there should have been measurable research targets included as well, which would have facilitated better progress tracking and accountability among national governments. We also note with some concern the lack of follow-up outlined in the text, with the next High-Level Meeting on AMR to be held in 2029, providing insufficient time to course correct if inadequate progress has been made.   This political declaration is a laudable step forward, but the true test will be in the implementation of these commitments, as the next few months now become about setting up the right systems and structures to turn principles into action and ensure that this agenda is advanced in other multilateral forums like the G20.   “Antimicrobial resistance poses one of the most pressing threats to global health, and the High-Level Meeting on AMR and its political declaration represent a pivotal moment in our collective response,” said GHTC Executive Director Dr. Kristie Mikus. “We applaud the political declaration’s commitment to promote and invest in R&D in the AMR space, especially in low- and middle-income countries, and to push for a stronger innovation ecosystem for new technologies. As we continue to experience the rising tide of drug-resistant infections and emerging infectious threats, innovation will be more essential than ever before to promote the production of effective, affordable, and accessible health technologies on a global scale.”

GHTC Executive Director Dr. Kristie Mikus issued the following statement in response to the release by the World Health Organization (WHO) of new guidance on best practices in clinical trials. This guidance comes following a two-year development effort prompted by the 2022 adoption of a World Health Assembly resolution on strengthening clinical trial capacity. GHTC has been engaged in robust consultations with the WHO Science Division throughout the process.“Clinical trials are the backbone of medical progress, helping translate promising discoveries from a lab into proven solutions for the patients and communities who need them worldwide. We welcome the release by WHO of new clinical trial guidance, which will support countries, industry, and researchers in conducting better, more inclusive clinical trials during both ordinary times and health emergencies. We particularly applaud the guidance’s focus on strengthening trial infrastructure in low-resource settings and expanding the inclusion of groups traditionally underrepresented in clinical research, including children and pregnant and lactating women and individuals.  Every region should have the capacity to conduct high-quality research, and every person deserves to benefit from the fruits of science. Today’s release of WHO clinical trial guidance is a step forward in realizing that vision.” 

The Global Health Technologies Coalition (GHTC) welcomes commitments by G7 nations to advancing health research and development (R&D) included in the G7 Apulia Leaders’ Communiqué. GHTC was pleased to see G7 leaders explicitly recommit to ending HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria, in particular, through support for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, as well as neglected tropical diseases and polio as public health threats by 2030, and to countering the effects of climate change on infectious diseases. While it was encouraging to see this signal of political will at the highest level of government, it was disappointing that leaders fell short of offering new funding pledges or specific plans to realize these aims. We also welcome the expression of support by G7 leaders for the Pandemic Fund, which included a call for expanding the donor base and securing at least US$2 billion in new pledges and cofinancing. Given that the fund could prove a powerful new financial instrument for strengthening R&D and regulatory capacity in low- and middle-income countries, we hope that G7 leaders will follow through and provide new commitments as part of the fund’s replenishment this fall. On antimicrobial resistance (AMR), it was encouraging to see leaders vow to support public-private partnerships and implement push and pull incentives to accelerate the development of new antimicrobials and other tools to combat AMR. We also appreciate the G7 articulating support for an “ambitious” Political Declaration for the United Nations High-Level Meeting on AMR, with concrete targets and an evidence-based panel to drive action. We hope that in the coming months, new R&D targets will be included in the final text to complement the current high-level global targets outlined in the zero draft. While we applaud G7 leaders for voicing their continued support for research initiatives to confront emerging and enduring health threats, we now call on them to match their statements with follow-through and financial pledges to translate these commitments into reality.