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08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Specialized rehab marketing firm delivers consistent growth for behavioral health treatment centers across the United States through search marketing and advertising. NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Digital Admits, a drug rehab marketing agency serving addiction...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Takeda Pharmaceuticals Sponsors "Living with Narcolepsy Type 1" Inaugural Session CAMAS, Wash., Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Narcolepsy Network is pleased to introduce The Listening Project, an initiative providing biopharmaceutical companies with unprecedented equal access to the...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Dr Andrew McGregor of Park Orthodontics, Glasgow, achieves prestigious Apex-level Invisalign recognition, positioning him among the top 1% Invisalign providers worldwide. GLASGOW, Scotland, Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Park Orthodontics proudly announces that Dr Andrew McGregor and...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Viva Diagnostic Imaging, a leader in concierge-style medical imaging services, is proud to announce its official expansion into Arizona with the opening of its new outpatient imaging center in Mesa. MESA, Ariz., Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Viva Diagnostic Imaging, a leader in...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Joint venture with Fresenius Medical Care leverages exclusive access to My Reason® dataset with more than 35,000 patients and ML models to develop targets therapies BOSTON, Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Nephronomics, a precision medicine company developing targeted therapies for...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

NEYA just launched a new reusable menstrual disc applicator that makes period disc insertion easier, cleaner, and simple. NEYA is designed by a women's health nurse practitioner to work with most popular reusable discs. TAMPA, Fla., Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- NEYA, a women-founded...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Bold move aims to raise truck drivers' 61-year life expectancy and boost their health and well-being CARMEL, Ind., Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Project 61, the 501(c)(3) nonprofit tackling the trucking industry's driver health crisis, has acquired Offshift - the leading digital...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

A recent lawsuit filed by Wisner Baum LLP alleges that Johnson & Johnson and Eli Lilly marketed powerful antipsychotics to vulnerable groups—including children, the elderly, and people with disabilities—despite known links to breast cancer. The complaint accuses the drug makers of...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

The data from over 7,200 Washington state patients also show a 94% reduction in opioid use with addiction treatment that combines specialist providers, medication and regular lab testing. RENTON, Wash., Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Ideal Option, a national leader in outpatient...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

The Cleanroom Center announces Mecart Cleanrooms as its first Founding Partner, marking a major milestone for the Dallas-based innovation hub. Mecart, known for its high-performance modular cleanroom systems, joins the Center to provide clients with direct access to turnkey solutions in a...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

The Second Annual "Where is EB?" 5K Walk and Fundraiser is scheduled to take place on Sunday, September 7, 2025, at the Annenberg Community Beach House in Santa Monica. The event supports Team PHenomenal Hope, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness and funds for...

08/04/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Newly executed contracts with regional Blues plans and forward-thinking PBMs reflect AvevoRx's strategic investment in patient-centered managed care and commitment to helping payers and providers focus on the overall cost of care GREENSBORO, N.C., Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ --...

08/03/2025   CDC Travel Notices
Some international destinations have circulating poliovirus. Before any international travel, make sure you are up to date on your polio vaccines. Country List : Afghanistan, Algeria, Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Democratic Republic of the Congo, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen, Indonesia, Sudan, Kenya, Guinea, Egypt, Zimbabwe, Angola, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, Republic of South Sudan, Uganda, French Guiana (France), Djibouti, Ghana, Spain, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Finland, Germany, Poland, United Kingdom, including England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, Burkina Faso, Papua New Guinea, Central African Republic, Tanzania, including Zanzibar
08/03/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Olaris will highlight data demonstrating the power of its myOLARIS™-KTdx urine-based diagnostic to detect and differentiate kidney graft injury with high accuracy. These findings represent a major step toward enabling non-invasive, real-time monitoring to improve long-term outcomes for...

08/01/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Victor Bowman, son of the legendary Dr. Sebi, brings a bold new era of healing to Brooklyn from August 6–10, 2025. Carrying forward his father's groundbreaking legacy, Bowman will lead a powerful five-day community wellness event at 958 Halsey Street—blending tradition, innovation, and...

08/01/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Midstate Radiology Associates, LLC. has expanded its Connecticut footprint once again, taking over professional radiology services at Windham Hospital. This growth reflects the organization's continued commitment to delivering high-quality, patient-centered imaging with best-in-class...

08/01/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

CHICAGO, Aug. 1, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Ziegler, a specialty investment bank, is pleased to announce the successful closing of HumanGood California Obligated Group's $67,230,000 Series 2025A Bonds (the "Bonds") through the California Municipal Finance Authority. Sarkis Garabedian,...

08/01/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

The Melanoma Research Foundation (MRF) is thrilled to announce one of the next events in its annual Miles for Melanoma nationwide 5K program, bringing together local melanoma patients, supporters, care partners and thrivers. This year we will be hosting our annual Philadelphia event on...

08/01/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

VaxCare, the largest primary care vaccination network in the U.S. and the only integrated care delivery platform that connects and automates the entire vaccine ecosystem, recently released findings from a meta-analysis of its 10 most recent health system assessments. Each assessment is...

08/01/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

Join the Official Autograph Signing Party with Vince Young, August 12, 2025 DALLAS, Aug. 1, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The Undefeated Tribe, a Crunch Fitness Franchisee, previews their $5 million, 54,000 square foot gym in Duncanville, Texas on August 12. This will be the first time...

08/01/2025   PR Web Health & Fitness

PsychAssist.ai launches as the first AI-native platform purpose-built for assessment psychologists. Automating the entire workflow without compromising your clinical voice. From intake to diagnosis to multi-audience reporting, every step reflects how you practice not how a prompt...

07/31/2025   CDC Travel Notices
There is an outbreak of chikungunya in Guangdong Province, China. Mosquitoes spread the virus that causes chikungunya.
07/30/2025   WHO News
Tribute to Dr David Nabarro
07/29/2025   WHO News

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), of which WHO is a member, today issued a Food Insecurity and Malnutrition Alert for the Gaza Strip. The details are as noted below. 

Key highlights 

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) has issued a stark warning today that the worst-case scenario of Famine is now unfolding in the Gaza Strip. Amid relentless conflict, mass displacement, severely restricted humanitarian access, and the collapse of essential services, including healthcare, the crisis has reached an alarming and deadly turning point. 

Mounting evidence shows that widespread starvation, malnutrition, and disease are driving a rise in hunger-related deaths. Latest data indicates that Famine thresholds have been reached for food consumption in most of the Gaza Strip and for acute malnutrition in Gaza City.

Recommended actions 

  • End hostilities
  • Ensure humanitarian access
  • Protect civilians, aid workers, and civilian infrastructure
  • Restore life-saving and multi-sectoral humanitarian assistance safely and with dignity
  • Restore the flow of commercial goods and local production capacities.

About the IPC

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) is an innovative multi-partner initiative for improving food security and nutrition analysis and decision-making. By using the IPC classification and analytical approach, governments, UN agencies, nongovernmental organizations, civil society and other relevant actors work together to determine the severity and magnitude of acute and chronic food insecurity, and acute malnutrition situations in a country, according to internationally recognized scientific standards.

The main goal of the IPC is to provide decision-makers with a rigorous, evidence- and consensus-based analysis of food insecurity and acute malnutrition situations, to inform emergency responses as well as medium- and long-term policy and programming.

07/28/2025   WHO News
An estimated 8.2 percent of the global population, or about 673 million people, experienced hunger in 2024, according to the latest State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) report published today by five United Nations specialized agencies.
07/28/2025   WHO News

As we mark World Hepatitis Day, WHO calls on governments and partners to urgently accelerate efforts to eliminate viral hepatitis as a public health threat and reduce liver cancer deaths.

"Every 30 seconds, someone dies from a hepatitis-related severe liver disease or liver cancer. Yet we have the tools to stop hepatitis,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.

Viral hepatitis – types A, B, C, D, and E – are major causes of acute liver infection. Among these only hepatitis B, C, and D can lead to chronic infections that significantly increase the risk of cirrhosis, liver failure, or liver cancer. Yet most people with hepatitis don’t know they’re infected. Types B, C, and D affect over 300 million people globally and cause more than 1.3 million deaths each year, mainly from liver cirrhosis and cancer.

Hepatitis D now classified as carcinogenic

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) recently classified hepatitis D as carcinogenic to humans, just like hepatitis B and C. Hepatitis D, which only affects individuals infected with the hepatitis B, is associated with a two- to six-fold higher risk of liver cancer compared to hepatitis B alone. This reclassification marks a critical step in global efforts to raise awareness, improve screening, and expand access to new treatments for hepatitis D.

“WHO has published guidelines on testing and diagnosis of Hepatitis B and D in 2024, and is actively following the clinical outcomes from innovative treatments for hepatitis D,” said Dr Meg Doherty, incoming Director of Science for Health at WHO.

Treatment with oral medicine can cure hepatitis C within 2 to 3 months and effectively suppress hepatitis B with life-long therapy. Treatment options for hepatitis D are evolving. However, the full benefit of reducing liver cirrhosis and cancer deaths can only be realized through urgent action to scale up and integrate hepatitis services – including vaccination, testing, harm reduction, and treatment – into national health systems.

Latest data and progress

Encouragingly, the majority of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have strategic plans on hepatitis in place and progress in national hepatitis responses is increasing:

  • in 2025, the number of countries reporting national hepatitis action plans increased from 59 to 123;
  • as of 2025, 129 countries have adopted policies for hepatitis B testing among pregnant women, up from 106 reported in 2024; and
  • 147 countries have introduced the hepatitis B birth dose vaccination, an increase from 138 in 2022.

However, critical gaps remain in service coverage and outcomes, as stated in the 2024 Global Hepatitis Report:

  • testing and treatment coverage remain critically low; only 13% of people with hepatitis B and 36% with hepatitis C had been diagnosed by 2022;
  • treatment rates were even lower – 3% for hepatitis B and 20% for hepatitis C – well below the 2025 targets of 60% diagnosed and 50% treated; and
  • integration of hepatitis services remains uneven: 80 countries have incorporated hepatitis services into primary health care; 128 into HIV programmes and just 27 have integrated hepatitis C services into harm reduction centres.

    The next challenge will be to scale up the implementation of prevention, testing and treatment coverage. Achieving WHO’s 2030 targets could save 2.8 million lives and prevent 9.8 million new infections. With declining donor support, countries must prioritize domestic investment, integrated services, better data, affordable medicines, and ending stigma.

  • Forging new partnerships

    To mark World Hepatitis Day, WHO is partnering with Rotary International and the World Hepatitis Alliance to strengthen global and local advocacy. This year’s campaign Hepatitis: Let’s break it down demands action to confront the rising toll of liver cancer linked to chronic hepatitis infections. It also calls for decisive steps to dismantle persistent barriers – from stigma to funding gaps – that continue to slow progress in prevention, testing, and treatment.

    Through a joint webinar and coordinated outreach, the partnership underscores the vital role of civil society and community leadership, alongside governments, in sustaining momentum and accelerating progress toward hepatitis elimination.

     

    07/27/2025   WHO News
    Malnutrition is on a dangerous trajectory in the Gaza Strip, marked by a spike in deaths in July. The crisis remains entirely preventable. Deliberate blocking and delay of large-scale food, health, and humanitarian aid has cost many lives.
    07/23/2025   WHO News

    The World Health Organization (WHO) has certified Timor-Leste as malaria-free, a remarkable achievement for a country that prioritized the disease and embarked on a concerted, nation-wide response shortly after gaining independence in 2002.

    “WHO congratulates the people and government of Timor-Leste on this significant milestone,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “Timor-Leste’s success proves that malaria can be stopped in its tracks when strong political will, smart interventions, sustained domestic and external investment and dedicated health workers unite.”

    With today’s announcement, a total of 47 countries and 1 territory have been certified as malaria-free by WHO. Timor-Leste is the third country to be certified in the WHO South-East Asia region, joining Maldives and Sri Lanka which were certified in 2015 and 2016 respectively.

    Certification of malaria elimination is granted by WHO when a country has proven, beyond reasonable doubt, that the chain of indigenous transmission has been interrupted nationwide for at least the previous three consecutive years.

    “We did it. Malaria has been one of our most relentless enemies – silent, persistent, and deadly. We lost too many lives to a disease that should be preventable. But our health workers never gave up, our communities held strong, and our partners, like WHO, walked beside us. From 223 000 cases to zero – this elimination honours every life lost and every life now saved. We must safeguard this victory with continued vigilance and community action to prevent malaria's re-entry,” said Dr Élia António de Araújo dos Reis Amaral, SH, Minister of Health, Government of Timor-Leste.

    A rapid shift from high burden country to malaria-free

    Since gaining independence in 2002, Timor-Leste has made remarkable strides in the fight against malaria – reducing cases from a peak of more than 223 000 clinically diagnosed cases in 2006 to zero indigenous cases from 2021 onwards.

    Timor-Leste’s success in eliminating malaria was driven by the Ministry of Health’s swift action in 2003 to establish the National Malaria Programme, a dedicated programme for planning, implementing, and monitoring malaria control efforts nationwide. With only two full-time officers initially, the programme was able to lay the foundation for progress early on through strong technical leadership, managerial capacity and attention to detail.

    Within a few years, the country introduced rapid diagnostic tests and artemisinin-based combination therapy as part of the National Malaria Treatment Guidelines and began distributing free long-lasting insecticide treated nets to communities most at risk.

    In 2009, with support from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Timor-Leste scaled up nationwide vector control efforts through the distribution of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets and indoor residual spraying. Malaria diagnosis was also expanded using microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests at the point of care across all local health posts.

    Facing the challenges of severe shortages of health workers and doctors, Timor-Leste made investments and developed its three-tier health system – comprising national hospitals, reference hospitals, community health centers (CHCs), and health posts – to ensure most residents can access care within an hour's walk. Additionally, citizens are provided with free health services at the point of care, as part of the government’s policy on free universal health care. Monthly mobile clinics and community outreach programmes further enhance health services in rural areas.

    Timor-Leste’s success in combating malaria highlights the importance of country leadership and strong collaboration between the Ministry of Health, WHO, local communities, non-governmental organizations, donors, and multiple government sectors. A real-time integrated case-based surveillance system ensures rapid data collection and response, while trained health workers ensure timely detection and screening of malaria cases, including at borders. These integrated efforts have paved the way for the country to be officially certified malaria-free.

    "Timor-Leste’s malaria-free certification is a defining national triumph – driven by bold leadership, tireless efforts of health workers, and the resolve of its people. As a young nation, Timor-Leste stayed focused – testing, treating, and investigating swiftly. Ending transmission and maintaining zero deaths takes more than science; it takes grit. This victory protects generations, present and future, and shows what a determined country can achieve,” said Dr Arvind Mathur, WHO Representative to Timor-Leste.
     

    Note to the editor

    WHO malaria-free certification
    The final decision on awarding a malaria-free certification is made by the WHO Director-General, based on a recommendation by the Technical Advisory Group on Malaria Elimination and Certification and validation from the Malaria Policy Advisory Group. More on WHO’s malaria-free certification process.

     

    07/21/2025   CDC Travel Notices
    There are outbreaks of clade II mpox in Liberia and Sierra Leone, where mpox is endemic. Country List : Sierra Leone, Liberia
    07/21/2025   CDC Travel Notices
    There are confirmed and suspect cases of diphtheria in the Kankan region of Guinea. Vaccination against diphtheria is essential to protect against disease. If you are traveling to an affected area, you should be up to date with your diphtheria vaccines.
    07/21/2025   WHO News

    WHO condemns in the strongest terms the attacks on a building housing WHO staff in Deir al Balah in Gaza, the mistreatment of those sheltering there, and the destruction of its main warehouse.

    Following intensified hostilities in Deir al Balah after the latest evacuation order issued by Israeli military, the WHO staff residence was attacked three times today. Staff and their families, including children, were exposed to grave danger and traumatized after airstrikes caused a fire and significant damage. Israeli military entered the premises, forcing women and children to evacuate on foot toward Al-Mawasi amid active conflict. Male staff and family members were handcuffed, stripped, interrogated on the spot, and screened at gunpoint. Two WHO staff and two family members were detained. Three were later released, while one staff member remains in detention. Thirty-two people, including women and children, were collected and evacuated to the WHO office in a high-risk mission, once access became possible. The office itself is close to the evacuation zone and active conflict.

    WHO demands continuous protection of its staff and the immediate release of the remaining detained staff member.

    The latest evacuation order has affected several WHO premises. As the United Nations’s (UN) lead health agency, WHO’s operational presence in Gaza is now compromised, crippling efforts to sustain a collapsing health system and pushing survival further out of reach for more than two million people. 

    Most of WHO’s staff housing is now inaccessible. Last night, due to intensified hostilities, 43 staff and their families were already relocated from several staff residences to the WHO office, under darkness and at significant risk.

    WHO’s main warehouse located in Deir al Balah is within the evacuation zone, and was damaged yesterday after an attack caused explosions and fire inside - part of a pattern of systematic destruction of health facilities. It was later looted by desperate crowds.

    With the main warehouse nonfunctional and the majority of medical supplies in Gaza depleted, WHO is severely constrained in adequately supporting hospitals, emergency medical teams and health partners, already critically short on medicines, fuel, and equipment. WHO urgently calls on Member States to help ensure a sustained and regular flow of medical supplies into Gaza.

    The geographical coordinates of all WHO premises, including offices, warehouses, and staff housing, are shared with the relevant parties. These facilities are the backbone of WHO’s operations in Gaza and must always be protected, regardless of evacuation or displacement orders. Any threat to these premises is a threat to the entire humanitarian health response in Gaza.  

    In line with the UN’s decision, WHO will remain in Deir al Balah, deliver and expand its operations.

    With 88% of Gaza now under evacuation orders or within Israeli-militarized zones, there is no safe place to go.

    WHO is appalled by the dangerous conditions under which humanitarians and health workers are forced to operate. As the security situation and access continue to deteriorate, red lines are repeatedly crossed, and humanitarian operations pushed into an ever-shrinking space to respond. 

    WHO calls for the immediate release of the WHO staff member detained today, and the protection of all our staff and premises. We reiterate our call for the active protection of civilians, health care and health-care premises and for rapid and unimpeded flow of aid, including food, fuel and health supplies, at scale into and across Gaza. WHO also calls for the unconditional release of hostages. 

    Life in Gaza is being relentlessly squeezed, and the chance to prevent loss of lives and reverse immense damage to the health system slips further out of reach each day. A ceasefire is not just necessary, it is overdue. 

    07/16/2025   CDC Travel Notices
    Dengue is a year-round risk in many parts of the world, with outbreaks commonly occurring every 2-5 years. Travelers to risk areas should prevent mosquito bites. Country List : Colombia, Ecuador, including the Galápagos Islands, Guatemala, Panama, Sudan, French Polynesia, including the island groups of Society Islands (Tahiti, Moorea, and Bora-Bora), Marquesas Islands (Hiva Oa and Ua Huka), and Austral Islands (Tubuai and Rurutu), Philippines, Fiji, Comoros, Tonga, Samoa, Cook Islands (New Zealand), Kiribati (formerly Gilbert Islands), includes Tarawa, Tabuaeran (Fanning Island), and Banaba (Ocean Island), Bangladesh, Mali, Tuvalu
    07/14/2025   WHO News
    WHO has validated Senegal as having eliminated trachoma as a public health problem. Senegal becomes the ninth country in WHO’s African Region to have achieved this feat.
    07/14/2025   WHO News
    In 2024, 89% of infants globally received at least one dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP)-containing vaccine, and 85% completed all three doses, according to new data released today by WHO and UNICEF. Despite the progress, the latest estimates highlight a concerning trajectory.
    07/14/2025   WHO News
    The World Health Organization (WHO) released today new guidelines recommending the use of injectable lenacapavir (LEN) twice a year as an additional pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) option for HIV prevention, in a landmark policy action that could help reshape the global HIV response. The guidelines are being issued at the 13th International AIDS Society Conference (IAS 2025) on HIV Science, in Kigali, Rwanda.
    07/13/2025   CDC Travel Notices
    Areas in several countries are reporting a low number of cases of Oropouche. Oropouche is spread primarily through the bites of infected midges (small flies) and mosquitoes. Country List : Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Cuba, Panama
    07/12/2025   WHO News

    The United Nations warns that the fuel shortage in Gaza has reached critical levels.  

    Fuel is the backbone of survival in Gaza. It powers hospitals, water systems, sanitation networks, ambulances, and every aspect of humanitarian operations. Fuel supplies are needed to move the fleet used for transporting essential goods across the Strip and to operate a network of bakeries producing fresh bread for the affected population. Without fuel, these lifelines will vanish for 2.1 million people.  

    After almost two years of war, people in Gaza are facing extreme hardships, including widespread food insecurity. When fuel runs out, it places an unbearable new burden on a population teetering on the edge of starvation.  

    Without adequate fuel, UN agencies responding to this crisis will likely be forced to stop their operations entirely, directly impacting all essential services in Gaza. This means no health services, no clean water, and no capacity to deliver aid.  

    Without adequate fuel, Gaza faces a collapse of humanitarian efforts. Hospitals are already going dark, maternity, neonatal and intensive care units are failing, and ambulances can no longer move. Roads and transport will remain blocked, trapping those in need. Telecommunications will shut down, crippling lifesaving coordination and cutting families off from critical information, and from one another.  

    Without fuel, bakeries and community kitchens cannot operate. Water production and sanitation systems will shut down, leaving families without safe drinking water, while solid waste and sewage pile up in the streets. These conditions expose families to deadly disease outbreaks and push Gaza’s most vulnerable even closer to death.  

    For the first time in 130 days, a small amount of fuel entered Gaza this week. This is a welcome development, but it is a small fraction of what is needed each day to keep daily life and critical aid operations running. 

    The United Nations agencies and humanitarian partners cannot overstate the urgency of this moment: fuel must be allowed into Gaza in sufficient quantities and consistently to sustain life-saving operations. 

    07/11/2025   WHO News

    The World Health Organization has formally recognized the pivotal role of a number of heads of state and government in securing the adoption of the WHO Pandemic Agreement by the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly in May 2025.

    At a special event at WHO Headquarters in Geneva on 10 July 2025, plaques were presented to the representatives of two countries whose former and current presidents, His Excellency Sebastián Piñera, former President of Chile, and His Excellency Kais Saied, President of Tunisia, advocated for the Agreement from the outset. Certificates were also awarded to leaders of 25 other countries for their guidance and commitment throughout the negotiation process.

    “The adoption by the World Health Assembly of the Pandemic Agreement was a historic moment in global health,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “But we would not have reached that moment without sustained political advocacy from the highest levels”.

    Countries whose current or former presidents or prime ministers were also recognized include Albania, Costa Rica, Croatia, Fiji, France, Germany, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Rwanda, Senegal, Serbia, South Africa, Spain, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

    The Pandemic Agreement represents a global commitment to a more robust international health architecture, one that is grounded in equity, cooperation, and shared responsibility.

    Political momentum behind the Agreement was galvanized in part by a commentary published in major international outlets in 2021, in which 25 heads of state and international organizations called for a pandemic treaty.

    Work has now begun to take forward key elements of the Pandemic Agreement, in particular on pathogen access and benefit sharing. This work is being led by an intergovernmental working group (the “IGWG on the WHO Pandemic Agreement”), which met for the first time this week. 

    07/11/2025   WHO News
    The World Health Organization (WHO) has validated Burundi as having eliminated trachoma as a public health problem, making it the eighth country in WHO’s African Region to reach this important milestone. Trachoma is also the first neglected tropical disease (NTD) to be eliminated in the country.
    07/11/2025   WHO News

    Artificial intelligence (AI) is ushering in a transformative era for traditional medicine, one where centuries-old healing systems are enhanced by cutting-edge technologies to deliver more safe, personalized, effective, and accessible care.

    At the AI for Good Global Summit, the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) released a new technical brief, Mapping the application of artificial intelligence in traditional medicine. Launched under the Global Initiative on AI for Health, this brief offers a roadmap harnessing this potential responsibly while safeguarding cultural heritage and data sovereignty.

    A new era for traditional medicine

    Traditional, complementary and integrative medicine (TCIM) is practiced in 170 countries and is used by billions of people. The TCIM practices are increasingly popular globally, driven by a growing interest in holistic health approaches that emphasize prevention, health promotion and rehabilitation.

    The new brief showcases experiences in many countries using AI to unlock new frontiers in personalized care, drug discovery, and biodiversity conservation. It includes examples such as how AI-powered diagnostics are being used in Ayurgenomics; machine learning models identifying medicinal plants in countries including Ghana and South Africa; and the use of AI to analyze traditional medicine compounds to treat blood disorders in the Republic of Korea.

    “Our Global Initiative on AI for Health aims to help all countries benefit from AI solutions and ensure that they are safe, effective, and ethical,” said Seizo Onoe, Director of the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Bureau. “This partnership of ITU, WHO and WIPO brings together the essential expertise.”

    Data-driven innovation with ethical roots

    The brief emphasizes the importance of good-quality, inclusive data and participatory design to ensure AI systems reflect the diversity and complexity of traditional medicine. AI applications can support strengthening the evidence and research base for TCIM, for example through the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library in India and the Virtual Health Library in the Americas, which use AI to preserve Indigenous knowledge, promote collaboration and prevent biopiracy. Biopiracy is a term for unauthorized extraction of biological resources and/or associated traditional knowledge from developing countries or the patenting of spurious inventions based on such knowledge or resources without compensation.

    “Intellectual property is an important tool to accelerate the integration of AI into traditional medicine,” said WIPO Assistant Director- General, Edward Kwakwa. “Our work at WIPO, including the recently adopted WIPO Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge, supports stakeholders manage IP to deliver on policy priorities including for Indigenous Peoples as well as local communities.”

    Guarding data sovereignty, empowering communities

    The new document calls for urgent action to uphold Indigenous Data Sovereignty (IDSov) and ensure that AI development is guided by free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) principles. It showcases community-led data governance models from Canada, New Zealand, and Australia, and urges governments to adopt legislation that empowers Indigenous Peoples to control and benefit from their data.

    “AI must not become a new frontier for exploitation,” said Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for Health Systems. “We must ensure that Indigenous Peoples and local communities are not only protected but are active partners in shaping the future of AI in traditional medicine.”

    A global call to action

    With the global TCIM market projected to reach nearly US$600 billion in 2025, the application of AI could further accelerate the growth and impact of TCIM and holistic health care. Current utilization and potential of AI highlight many opportunities, but there are many areas of knowledge gaps and risks.

    There is a need to develop holistic frameworks tailored to TCIM in areas such as regulation, knowledge sharing, capacity building, data governance and the promotion of equity, to ensure the safe, ethical and evidence-based integration of frontier technologies such as AI into the TCIM landscape.

    The new technical brief calls on all stakeholders to:

    • Invest in inclusive AI ecosystems that respect cultural diversity and IDSov;
    • Develop national policies and legal frameworks that explicitly address AI in traditional medicine;
    • Build capacity and digital literacy among traditional medicine practitioners and communities;
    • Establish global standards for data quality, interoperability, and ethical AI use; and
    • Safeguard traditional knowledge through AI-powered digital repositories and benefit-sharing models.

    By aligning the power of AI with the wisdom of traditional medicine, a new paradigm of care can emerge; one that honors the past, empowers the present, and shapes a healthier, more equitable future for all.

     

    07/10/2025   WHO News

    WHO Member States have held their first meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) on the WHO Pandemic Agreement, formalizing next steps on implementing key provisions of the historic legal instrument to make the world safer from future pandemics.

    Ambassador Tovar da Silva Nunes of Brazil, co-chair of the IGWG Bureau guiding the negotiations, said the first meeting, that ran from 9-10 July, was a critical moment in the global effort to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. It followed the World Health Assembly’s landmark adoption on 20 May 2025 of the WHO Pandemic Agreement.

    “Through the WHO Pandemic Agreement, countries recognized that global collaboration and action, based on equity, are essential for protecting people from future pandemics,” Ambassador Tovar said. “Now, through the IGWG, countries are breathing life into the Agreement by establishing the way forward to implement the Agreement’s life-saving provisions.”  

    The Assembly established the IGWG to, as a priority, draft and negotiate an annex to the WHO Pandemic Agreement on Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS). This PABS system is intended to enable safe, transparent and accountable access and benefit-sharing for PABS materials and sequence information. The outcome of the IGWG’s work on the PABS annex will be submitted to the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly in 2026 for its consideration.

    In addition to negotiating the PABS annex, the IGWG has been established to discuss procedural and other matters to prepare for the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Pandemic Agreement and develop a proposal for the terms of reference for the Coordinating Financial Mechanism.

    Fellow IGWG Bureau co-chair Mr Matthew Harpur, of the United Kingdom, said he was encouraged by the strong collaboration shown by WHO Member States to take the WHO Pandemic Agreement forward.

    “Global collaboration is the foundation of an effective response to global threats,” said Mr Harpur. “I am encouraged by the commitment shown by WHO Member States during the first IGWG to work together to protect their citizens, and those of all other countries.”

    The first meeting of the IGWG adopted the body’s method of work, timeline of activities leading up to next year’s World Health Assembly, and mode of engagement with relevant stakeholders, and elected co-chairs and vice chairs to lead the IGWG process. The IGWG also decided to identify experts to provide inputs on the PABS annex and possibly hold an informal briefing before the second meeting of the IGWG, which will be held on 15-19 September 2025.

    07/10/2025   WHO News
    Concurring with the advice unanimously expressed by the Committee during the meeting, the WHO Director-General determined that the upsurge of mpox 2024 continues to meet the criteria of a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) and, accordingly, on 9 June 2025, issued temporary recommendations to States Parties.