PHA-Exchange> Various topics

[Aviva]

> FORMULA FOR SUCCESS? NEEDS-BASED RESOURCE ALLOCATION IN HEALTHCARE
> A country's policy on healthcare financing can help or hinder access to
> services by poor people. How can different approaches to resource
allocation
> enable poor people to access essential health services? A report from the
UK
> Department for International Development's Health Systems Resource Centre
> presents lessons from Cambodia, South Africa and Uganda. In many
low-income
> countries resources are allocated through a mixture of political
negotiation
> and incremental budgeting based on established patterns. This can result
in
> resources going disproportionately to more vocal and visible urban
> populations, perpetuating pre-existing inequity. Allocation based on need
> would be a significant break with tradition. The report concludes that a
> needs-based approach is not necessarily pro-poor. The definition of equity
> must be consistent with any existing pro- poor health policy. Reallocation
> of resources takes time and should be incorporated into medium-term
> expenditure plans. Using a formula is objective and transparent and
> preferable to more subjective alternatives.
>

> US BULLYING ON DRUG PATENTS: ONE YEAR AFTER DOHA
http://www.oxfam.org/eng/pdfs/pp021112_bullying_patents.pdf
> This paper presents findings from an Oxfam commissioned review of US
> government bilateral policies on patents and medicines, pre and post Doha,
> to find out how far it has lived up to promises made in that agreement. It
> focused on the annual 'Special 301' trade report of the US government
which
> identifies countries it considers have inadequate intellectual property
> rights and which is widely feared by developing countries because of the
> attached threat of sanctions and associated diplomatic and political
> pressures. Some of the findings from the Oxfam review show that, contrary
to
> the spirit and the letter of the Doha agreement: US bilateral policy on
> patents and medicines is still heavily influenced by the narrow commercial
> interests of the giant pharmaceutical companies seeking to stave off
generic
> competition for lucrative patented drugs; The US government continues to
use
> bilateral and regional trade agreements outside the WTO to pressure
> developing countries to implement TRIPS-plus standards. Oxfam argues that
> these continued bilateral pressures against developing countries delay or
> restrict the production of cheaper generic versions of new medicines. This
> not only reduces poor people's access to medicines in these countries, but
> also chokes off the supply of cheap drugs to the vast majority of other
drug
> importing poor countries leaving them entirely dependent on expensive
> patented medicines.
>

> NARROWING THE 10/90 GAP: DIRECTING FUNDING FOR HEALTH RESEARCH TOWARDS
THOSE
> WHO NEED IT MOST
> http://www.eldis.org/dbtw-wpd/exec/
> dbtwpcgi.exe?

> Of the US$73 billion spent globally every year on health research only
about
> 10% is actually allocated for research into 90% of the world's health
> problems. This is what is known as the 10/90 gap. This third landmark
report
> of the Global Forum for Health Research underlines the crucial role that
> health and health research funding plays in breaking the cycle of
> poverty.The report covers progress towards narrowing this gap over the
past
> two years and outlines plans for the coming years. The report stresses
that
> prioritisation of health research spending at the global and national
levels
> is a necessity if research funds are to have the greatest impact possible
on
> the level of world health. However, it also notes that setting priorities
in
> terms of individual diseases is not enough and that cross-cutting
influences
> such as the capacity of a country to deliver health services, the
necessity
> to look at gender differences, behaviour and lifestyles harmful to health,
> and environmental problems like indoor air pollution must also be
> considered.
>
> WHO COMMISSION ON MACROECONOMICS AND HEALTH LAUNCHES ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER
> The Commission on Macroeconomics and Health (CMH) has created an
electronic
> newsletter to provide up-to-date information about national efforts to
> increase investment in health and improve the effectiveness of health
> expenditure. The MacroHealth Newsletter will feature Macroeconomics and
> Health Support Secretariat news, new findings on health investment and
> economic growth, country CMH launches and progress in implementing
national
> work in macroeconomics and health.
> Further details:
> http://www.equinetafrica.org/newsletter/newsletter.php?id=943


From: EQUINET-Newsletter
 EQUINET-Newsletter at equinetafrica.org
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