Now is the time for new global health framework, experts say

In this opinion piece in Stanford University's "Policy Review," Mark Dybul, a distinguished scholar and the inaugural global health fellow at the George W. Bush Institute; Peter Piot, director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine; and Julio Frenk, dean of the Harvard School of Public Health, discuss the need for "a structural and philosophical shift" in the global health field, writing, "As we approach the post-[Millennium Development Goal] era, now is the time for a new framework to establish an accelerated trajectory to achieve a healthy world."

The authors recount a brief history of global health work in the 21st century, and write, "It is as clear today as it was in 1944  that existing structures were created for a different time and that a 21st-century approach to global health requires a radical restructuring of 20th-century institutions to support coherent, country-owned, national health strategies that engage all sectors in design and implementation; that begin with the health of people to design integrated systems for public good in an accountable and transparent way; that balance human rights with pragmatism and shared responsibility; and that are underpinned by innovative approaches to finance ultimately leading to an orderly transition of funding towards national mechanisms driven by economic growth." They continue, "This radical vision can be achieved only with the leadership of an expanded G20 which includes more low-income countries and the active participation of other emerging economic powers and middle- and low-income countries," and conclude, "That is an audacious vision, but the recent history of global health and a long history of great human achievements teach us that what seems impossible can be done" (6/1).