Morning Breakouts

Obama To Sign Food Safety Law Today

January 4, 2011 Morning Briefing

News outlets report that the Food And Drug Administration is getting ready to begin implementing this new measure.

Also In Global Health News: Field Trial To Fight Dengue In Australia; Bangladesh Reducing Child Mortality; Yellow Fever In Uganda; HIV/AIDS In Iran

January 3, 2011 Morning Briefing

Lancet Editorial Highlights Similarities Between Current Health Challenges, Those From 1911

January 3, 2011 Morning Briefing

“After a century of progress, the issues that medicine must tackle in the coming year aren’t that different from the ones that faced doctors at the start of 1911, according to the observations” published Jan. 1 in a Lancet editorial, LiveScience reports (Parry, 12/30).

Newsweek Reports On Growth Of Safety Net Programs In Developing Countries

January 3, 2011 Morning Briefing

“[A] recent study by the World Health Organization and the International Labor Organization identified 72 different ‘social pension’ plans around the world dedicated to the elderly, the ill, or the down and out,” Newsweek writes in an article exploring the growth in welfare programs around the world. “Most countries on the [WHO/ILO] list are developing nations once considered too destitute to help their poor and that, until recently, had little or no welfare coverage at all. … While fighting inequality and helping the neediest has long been on the docket of Third World leaders, most previous attempts have been sabotaged by inefficiency, corruption, and stagnant or dysfunctional economies,” the magazine writes. “Now roaring economies in Asia, Latin America, and even Africa, coupled with better-functioning governments and sound fiscal stewardship, have stretched the policy horizons for many nations that once lived from one crisis to the next,” according to Newsweek.

Media Examine Potential Obama Administration Engagement With Africa In 2011, Foreign Policy Action On Capitol Hill

January 3, 2011 Morning Briefing

“President Barack Obama is quietly but strategically stepping up his outreach to Africa, using this year to increase his engagement with a continent that is personally meaningful to him and important to U.S. interests,” the Associated Press writes in a story looking at how the Obama administration might engage with African countries in the upcoming year.

The Scientist Examines How Nonprofit, For-Profit Pharma Groups Are Working Together To Make Drugs More Affordable For Developing Countries

January 3, 2011 Morning Briefing

“With philanthropists funneling billions of dollars into biomedical research and traditional drug discovery efforts producing fewer and fewer therapies, the line between for-profit and nonprofit life science companies is beginning to blur as both sides of the divide look for new options,” The Scientist magazine writes in an article that examines the rise in collaborations between nonprofit pharmaceutical companies and for-profit groups. “More and more for-profit enterprises are experimenting with nonprofit models, while nonprofit organizations look to incorporate for-profit business practices to stay afloat.”