S. Africa Introduces New TB Drugs; Activists Urge Public Health Emergency Declaration

News outlets report on discussions around the South African TB Conference in Durban, where results from new drugs were presented and activist groups urged the country to declare the TB epidemic a public health emergency.

Health-e: Government to introduce new drug-resistant TB drugs
“Government’s small-scale introduction of the first new TB drug [(bedaquiline)] in four decades is saving lives and paving the way for more, better, and cheaper drugs to treat drug-resistant TB. Many wonder if they will come fast enough for those who need them…” (Gonzalez, 6/12).

VOA News: Activist Group Calls on S. Africa to Declare TB a Public Health Emergency
“A leading activist group is calling on the South African government to declare the country’s tuberculosis epidemic a public health emergency. The Treatment Action Campaign made the plea this week at South Africa’s fourth TB Conference in Durban…” (DeCapua, 6/11).

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