Political Commitment, Global Support Can Bring NTD Treatments To Those In Need

In a post in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s “Impatient Optimists” blog, Richard Hatzfeld, communications director at the Sabin Vaccine Institute, discusses a Kenyan family affected by neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and “captured in a short video from END7, a campaign of the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases.” He continues, “More than half the population of Kenya is at risk for one or more of these diseases. But there is cause for optimism. With support from END7, Kenya’s National Program to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (NPELF) delivered pills to treat both lymphatic filariasis as well as the intestinal worm diseases threatening Neema, Fatuma, Alice, Khasirimi and the rest of their community. … With increased political commitment and global support, we can ensure that families like Fatuma’s have access to essential medication every year until NTDs no longer pose a public health threat, a goal that is achievable by the end of this decade” (4/2).

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