Dr. Ariel Pablos-Méndez, USAID Assistant Administrator for Global Health, opened the TB Policy and Scientific Symposium on October 28 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) hosted a high-level Tuberculosis (TB) Policy and Scientific Symposium following the release of the World Health Organization (WHO) 2015 Global TB Report on October 28. The symposium convened a panel of leaders and public health experts to review key findings from the TB report, deliberate ways to step up the TB response, and ultimately end the epidemic altogether. In his opening remarks, Dr. Ariel Pablos-Méndez, USAID Assistant Administrator for Global Health, commended the WHO on 20 years of annual reporting on TB and reaffirmed USAID’s commitment to supporting global TB efforts. Dr. Mario Raviglione, Director of the WHO Global TB Programme, then presented key report findings, which was followed by focused panel discussions.

The panelists included: Lawrence Gostin, O’Neill Institute Chair, Georgetown University and Director of WHO Collaborating Center on Public Health Law and Human Rights; Eric Goosby, United Nations Special Envoy on TB; Joanne Carter, Executive Director, RESULTS; Nora Rodriguez, MDR-TB survivor and patient advocate; Jishnu Das, Lead Economist, Development Research Group, World Bank; Philippe Jacon, President, Emerging Markets, Cepheid; Charles Daley,  Chief, Division of Mycobacterial and Respiratory Infections, National Jewish Health; I.D. Rusen, Senior Vice President for Research and Development, The Union;  and Alex Golubkov, Senior MDR-TB Advisor, USAID. The discussions were moderated by Cheri Vincent, Infectious Diseases Division Chief, USAID.

The panelists called for an acceleration of political momentum and social mobilization around TB in the countries with the highest TB burden, raising the alarm that TB now ranks alongside HIV and AIDS as one of the top infectious disease killers in the world and claims a staggering 1.5 million lives each year.  Discussions at the symposium included the role of TB in the universal health coverage and poverty alleviation agenda; early detection of people with TB to prevent the spread of disease; and addressing the multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) public health crisis through new drugs, treatment regimens, and care paradigms.

The event attracted nearly a hundred participants from public health, policy, advocacy, and scientific backgrounds, providing an opportunity for a robust exchange on global efforts to combat TB. The symposium ended with Dr. Goosby encouraging the global community to band together in the fight against TB. Goosby noted that although both TB and HIV and AIDS often affect the same vulnerable groups of people, the global investment in TB has lagged behind with TB deaths not declining at a rate that is acceptable.  “We have done it before, and we can do it again,” he said, adding that the world has made unprecedented progress in fighting other infectious diseases and can do the same for TB with focused resources and determination.  

View photos from the event.