96 Global Health NOW: Warnings of Human Toll as Middle East Conflict Widens; and High-Impact, Home-Based Prevention View this email in your browser March 2, 2026 Forward Share Post TOP STORIES Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces deliberately targeted and killed people with disabilities during and after the takeover of El Fasher last October, per a Human Rights Watch report published last week drawing on interviews with 22 survivors and witnesses. The New Humanitarian 
Both the DRC and Guinea have forged health cooperation agreements with the U.S.—the latest of several bilateral deals the U.S. has made in Africa after dismantling its former USAID health funding last year; Guinea’s agreement totals ~$143 million in funding over the next five years, per Reuters via Yahoo!, and the DRC’s agreement totals $1.2 billion through 2030, per Devidiscourse.    Spain reported a possible infection with the swine flu virus—the A(H1N1)v variant—that may have been transmitted between humans, but a Catalonia region health official said the risk of transmission to other people was very low; the WHO is conducting additional tests to confirm the diagnosis and rule out contamination or external interference. Reuters via Yahoo!    Meningococcal B vaccine is not effective at preventing gonorrhea infection in high-risk groups, per the results of a randomized controlled trial presented at the Conference on Retroviruses and Infections last week ; the findings show that gonorrhea incidence among gay and bisexual men with a history of gonorrhea infection was essentially the same whether they received the vaccine or a placebo. CIDRAP  IN FOCUS Severe damage is seen at Gandi Hospital, in northern Tehran, following U.S. and Israeli joint strikes on the Iranian capital, on March 2. Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Warnings of Human Toll as Middle East Conflict Widens
   As conflict spreads rapidly across the Middle East following joint U.S.-Israel strikes across Iran this weekend, global leaders are warning against escalating humanitarian impacts throughout the region—including attacks on health care and other civilian institutions:     “Health facilities are protected under international humanitarian law,” asserted WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in response to “extremely worrying” reports that Tehran's Gandhi Hospital was struck during bombardment, per NDTV's report—details that WHO leaders were still working to verify today.  

• In Israel, health care facilities have moved operations underground and to other protected spaces, reports the Times of Israel.  

Humanitarian groups are investigating reports of a strike on a primary school in Minab in southern Iran, after Iranian authorities reported ~150 killed, per France24; U.S. and Israeli leaders have not confirmed the attack.  

• UNESCO has decried such a strike as “a grave violation of humanitarian law.” 

Meanwhile, UN leaders called for immediate de-escalation, per UN News, as ongoing fallout could lead to “destruction on a potentially unimaginable scale ... across the Middle East region,” warned Volker Türk, the High Commissioner for Human Rights: 

• “As always, in any armed conflict, it is civilians who end up paying the ultimate price,” said Türk. 

GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HIV/AIDS High-Impact, Home-Based Prevention    New HIV infections can be dramatically reduced through targeted, home-based care, finds a large-scale study out of Kenya and Uganda, which saw new infection rates cut 70%.     Details: The Sustainable East Africa Research in Community Health (SEARCH) study involved ~80,000 people across 16 communities with 8–16% HIV prevalence, all located in rural regions where access to clinics was difficult.  

• ~500 community health workers delivered tests and PrEP/PEP drugs directly to homes and coordinated follow-up care via smartphone apps. 

• Overall, the intervention led to a 4X increase in use of anti-HIV drugs in people who were not infected with the virus.   

Future impact: Utilizing the “community precision health” model plus the adoption of long-acting injectables could push incidence near zero, researchers say.     Science    Related: Kenya to offer patients free six-month HIV 'breakthrough' prevention jab – RFI  DATA POINT

1,100+
————
US measles cases so far in 2026, per the CDC—with a Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Outbreak Response Innovation tracker placing the number of confirmed cases at 1,153 since January 1.—CNN

Related: Measles outbreaks are costing the U.S. millions of dollars. The true losses can't be counted. – NBC LETTER TO THE EDITOR Correcting the Story on Australia’s Cigarette Taxes     Regarding the February 17 GHN summary on a New York Times article (gift link) highlighting the recent increase in illicit cigarettes in Australia, the newspaper missed crucial parts of this important story. As noted, when cigarette taxes and prices increase dramatically, some smokers may shift to illicit cigarettes.      However, experiences in other countries including the U.K. and Montenegro demonstrate that straightforward measures to secure the supply chain mitigate the illegal market. In the U.K., prices are comparable to Australia’s, but illicit trade is a manageable ~10%. They did this through strong policies including registering vendors who are adequately punished for tax violations; placing their customs officials in source countries through mutual agreements; and developing a tracking and tracing system for all tobacco products that permits tax authorities to know precisely where products are.      Australia, however, has done little along these lines, which is their real challenge. Contrary to this reporting, higher taxes are not the central problem but rather a proven public health success.     Jeffrey Drope, PhD  QUICK HITS White House stalls release of approved US science budgets – Nature     More Parents Say 'No' to Vitamin K Shots for Newborns – MedPage Today    Why new doctors aren't specializing in infectious diseases – Axios

Families Defend Disability Services Amid Medicaid Cuts – KFF Health News

Ivermectin is making a post-pandemic comeback, among cancer patients – NPR     Why We Vaccinate Our Dogs and Cats – Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health   Issue No. 2872
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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UN human rights chief Volker Türk warned on Friday that the Epstein and Gisèle Pellicot scandals are an illustration of intensifying threats to women and girls forced to suffer in silence.

Part of the largest CIHR-led cancer prevention investment, McGill researchers will develop approaches to reduce cancer risk and improve early detection 

96 McGill Perspectives on Global Health: February 2026 Issue February 2026 View this email in your browser 
NEWSLETTER

This February, 

We are highlighting some recently published articles on the blog:

🔹 Loss of Measles Elimination Status in Canada
🔹 Still Here: How Colonialism Keeps TB Around 
🔹 Malignancy in Academia: An Editorial on the Academic Hidden Curriculum of Dysfunction
🔹 Sex Ed in the U.S. is Under Assault - Our Health, Rights and Relationships Are at Stake
🔹 The Indigenous Health Centre of Tiohtià:ke: A Necessity, not a Luxury
🔹 In Conversation with La Maison Bleue

Not to mention...
🔹 Spotlight Awards are Open! Winter 2025 Call for Health Experiences IS OPEN! Apply today!

Thank you for being part of our community. Enjoy the read! 💙✨

-->  Selected Articles for this Month  Loss of Measles Elimination Status in Canada “Still, the anxiety around this outbreak is not mere frustration at a disease we thought we buried. It is a troubling hint of the vaccine-resistant future that may be waiting ahead." - Author: Becca Winkelaar --> Still Here: How Colonialism Keeps TB Around "The historical trajectory of TB in Canada, particularly its disproportionate impact on Indigenous populations, serves as a poignant illustration of [...] social determinants at play."
- Author: Hillary Wright --> Malignancy in Academia: An Editorial on the Academic Hidden Curriculum of Dysfunction “Academia is often idealized as a space of growth, curiosity, and knowledge creation. But glossy mission statements and institutional pride often mask a more uncomfortable reality: a silent curriculum of power, inequity, and waste (1). From medical school in Egypt, graduate training in Canada, and through the professional experiences, I have witnessed systems that differ in form but share common dysfunction. I have made mistakes. I remained silent, learned, and watched many others quietly endure the same.”
 - Author: Moustafa Laymouna --> Sex Ed in the U.S. is Under Assault - Our Health, Rights, and Relationships Are at Stake “Sex education in America has long shifted with each administration, its content dictated by politics rather than public health. Federal funding priorities and Department of Education guidelines now serve as partisan tools in a culture war over our bodies and identities. But political ideology should not determine our right to accurate, life-saving information."
 - Authors: Maya Ueoku, Lila Aspin, Aleeyaa Alam --> The Indigenous Health Centre of Tiohtià:ke: A Necessity, not a Luxury "In spotlight is the Indigenous Health Centre of Tiohtià:ke (IHCT), a community health centre that provides necessary care to First Nations, Inuit, and Métis in the Montréal area and to those visiting the area. Approaching its 10th anniversary, the clinic is a celebration of hard work, determination, and compassion – removing barriers, delivering culturally sensitive care, and doing so with no charge to its clientele."
 - Author: Hillary Wright --> In Conversation with La Maison Bleue "Last semester, I had the privilege of volunteering at La Maison Bleue (LMB), a social perinatal organization with five branches across Montreal. LMB works with at-risk pregnant women and families, with a mission to reduce social inequalities and promote optimal child development. During my time there, I saw this mission come to life: children meeting with psychoeducators to assess their learning development, mothers attending workshops on Canada’s immigration process, and families bonding in the waiting room. The organization does more than just provide healthcare and social services; it fosters a community, oftentimes for people who might otherwise lack one." 
- Author: Bridget Li -->  In the Spotlight
  This month, we wanted to highlight a recently published piece by Juwel Rana, former Editor-in-Chief of the McGill Global Health Journal Long-term exposure to fine particulate matter and diabetes in Bangladeshi adults: Can clean air targets curb the rising diabetes burden? In a nationally representative 2022 study of Bangladeshi adults, higher long-term exposure to PM2.5 was associated with increased diabetes risk, with cleaner air targets potentially reducing national diabetes prevalence by up to 7.5%.    Click on the link to read more! -->  Share your Perspective on Global Health
  We are excited to announce our Winter 2026 Call for Papers in the following area:

• Health Experiences

The Health Experiences theme includes and is not limited to personal experiences with healthcare, illness, or an impactful clinical rotation you completed during your studies.

We encourage writers to explore creative aspects of this theme. For example, how do cultural practices or the arts allow us to better understand the illness experience and personalize the care people receive?  What are creative solutions to public health challenges?  

 Click here for submission guidelines.

You can submit your article, photo essay or article pitch to us by emailing us at: globalhealthblog@mcgill.ca. --> Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest information and experiences in global health! Subscribe Follow us on social media  --> Copyright © 2017 McGill Global Health Programs, All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
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96 Global Health NOW: Somalia’s Severe Food Insecurity; How Dentists are Driving Antibiotic Overuse Plus: Let’s Talk Turkey … Attacks View this email in your browser February 26, 2026 Forward Share Post TOP STORIES ~$900 million in U.S. funds designated for two public health emergency preparedness programs lack coordinated oversight, finds a new Government Accountability Office report, with the two HHS programs—the Public Health Emergency Preparedness program and the Hospital Preparedness Program—both failing to adequately track state and local emergency readiness. CIDRAP     Assisted dying legislation has passed in Jersey, making it the second British Isles region to pass such a statute following the Isle of Man; however, advocates warn that the law’s enactment could be slowed due to delays in the final approval process known as royal assent. The Independent     A “cocktail” of plastic particles and chemicals has been identified in microwavable meals, finds a paper by Greenpeace International that analyzed 24 recent scientific studies on such products. Euronews   Hundreds of international scientists could face increasing restrictions from the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology, with 3-year work limits, reduced access to labs, and some scientists from certain countries potentially losing all access as a part of proposed new rules. Science  IN FOCUS A man and children eat together at a camp as people receive food aid packages in Mogadishu, Somalia, February 25. Halil Ibrahim Sincar/Anadolu via Getty Images Somalia’s Severe Food Insecurity
The number of Somalis facing acute food insecurity has nearly doubled since last year, impacting a “staggering” 6.5 million people, as deepening drought, ongoing conflict, exorbitant food prices, and reduced aid all lead to deteriorating conditions, reports UN News. 

• And drought conditions are expected to remain “dire” through the spring, triggering further hunger across southern, central, and parts of northern Somalia—taking a particular toll on farming families, pastoralists, and people who are displaced, per the new IPC monitoring report. 

Children at extreme risk: 1.8+ million children under five are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition this year, including ~483,000 experiencing severe wasting—the deadliest form of malnutrition.     Flagging aid: The crisis has been further compounded by a drop in humanitarian assistance, with food aid reaching only 17% of the 4.8 million people in need in January 2026, reports Anadolu Ajansı. 

• Since aid cuts last year, there has been a “significant reduction in the availability of nutrition treatment services,” including preventive treatment, supplemental feeding and therapeutic clinics, and early detection and referral services for children.  

Call for intervention: The IPC is calling for an urgent influx of food aid and WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene) assistance to high-risk “hotspot” areas. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES INFECTIOUS DISEASES How Dentists are Driving Antibiotic Overuse  
U.S. dentists are prescribing antibiotics at increasing rates, contributing to rising antimicrobial resistance, while failing to install systems to prevent overuse, reports CIDRAP in its investigative series, “Antibiotic Aftershocks.”     By the numbers: Dentists issued 27 million+ antibiotic prescriptions in 2025—a 6% increase since 2020.  

• 80% of antibiotic prescriptions in dentistry are unnecessary, finds one 2019 study.  

Climbing clindamycin usage: The increase includes 2.3 million prescriptions for clindamycin, a high-risk drug with a link to deadly C. difficile infections, per one of CIDRAP’s reports.  

• Clindamycin ranks as the second-most prescribed dental antibiotic despite experts’ calls to minimize it. 

Siloed stewardship: While hospitals and health systems have adopted mandatory antibiotic stewardship programs, private dental offices lack similar oversight, shared patient records, or incentives to curb misuse.    Related:
  Curbing overuse of dental antibiotics proves daunting – CIDRAP    How to avoid inappropriate dental antibiotics – CIDRAP OPPORTUNITY Nominations Open for Fries Awards for Health
Do you know someone who has achieved a major accomplishment in health? Nominate them for the CDC Foundation’s Fries Awards for Health.

• The Fries Prize for Improving Health, a $100,000 prize, is awarded to an individual who has made major accomplishments in health improvement, with emphasis on recent contributions to health, and with the general criteria of the greatest good for the greatest number of people.

• The Elizabeth Fries Health Education Award, a $50,000 prize, recognizes a practitioner or scholar who has made a substantial contribution to advancing the field of health education or health promotion through research, program development, or program delivery.   

Nominations are open until April 4, 2026! 

• Learn how to submit a nomination  

• Learn more about the CDC Foundation Fries Awards for Health 

ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Let’s Talk Turkey … Attacks 
When Ottowa lab tech Michael Bourgon encountered two brazen birds on his walk home from work last week, he tried to be cordial.  

“Hey, what’s up turkeys?” he greeted. 

But they had come for blood, aggressively following Bourgon and giving him “the business,” he told CBC’s Ottowa Morning. As they pecked around his ankles, he quickly realized: “Whatever this is, I don’t want it.”  

His next thought: “Please don’t let me be the guy who goes viral for kicking a turkey in the face.” Instead, he gently kicked snow around the birds, which only provoked them further.  

Then, a stunning rescue.  

“Hey, hop in!” a perfect stranger called from a white SUV, despite Bourgon looking—self-described—“like the Unabomber.” 

We know all this thanks to another hero: Quick-thinking passerby Jody Paul knew “a naturally funny situation” when he saw one, and captured the must-watch video.  

But it didn’t stop there. Bourgon still had to face work—and the turkeys—the next day, and the next.  

“By round three, I was ready”—with some turkey face-off strategies for us all: Stand your ground, and don’t be “chaseable.”  

“Doormats get walked on,” he advised. “Don’t put up with the turkey nonsense.” 

QUICK HITS Group unveils 10-year blueprint to reduce blindness – The Guardian Nigeria    Newly released 2025 scorecard unveils progress and setbacks on health and gender equality across Southern Africa – WHO    More pregnant Americans are skipping prenatal care, CDC finds – Axios     Scientists discover a key to staying mentally sharp in old age – CNN     When the next global health crisis strikes, will we be ready in 100 days? – Devex Issue No. 2871
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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  Copyright 2026 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.


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Spending time in nature, even briefly, triggers changes in the brain that calm stress, restore attention and quiet mental clutter, a new study has found.

Researchers at McGill University and colleagues at Adolfo Ibáñez University in Chile have examined more than 100 brain-imaging studies from various disciplines. The result is one of the most comprehensive reviews to date of how the brain responds to nature.

An international early warning system blocked a shipment of chemicals used to make fentanyl that could have produced up to 1.6 billion potentially lethal doses, the UN narcotics control body said on Thursday.

96 Global Health NOW: Scrutiny of Shifting U.S. Aid Strategy; and Antiquated, Isolated TB Care View this email in your browser February 25, 2026 Forward Share Post TOP STORIES Guinea-Bissau has terminated a controversial U.S.-funded hepatitis B vaccine trial that was suspended earlier over ethics concerns, as it would deny half of all enrolled babies a birth-dose inoculation in the country, which carries one of the world’s heaviest burdens of hepatitis B infections. Menafn     15 U.S. states are suing to reverse changes to federal recommendations that reduced from 17 to 11 the number of diseases children are routinely vaccinated against, contending that the changes were not based on scientific evidence; HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., CDC acting director Jay Bhattacharya, and their respective agencies are named as defendants. The New York Times (gift link)    Cervical cancer rates in young U.S. women vary “substantially” by state, based on HPV vaccine uptake, as states with low vaccination rates see minimal progress, per a new study from the American Cancer Society; overall, rates have dropped 27% among U.S. women ages 20–31 since the introduction of the vaccine. CIDRAP    ~6 in 10 U.S. women will have some type of cardiovascular disease in the next 25 years, per a scientific statement published today in Circulation, which also forecasts “surges” in health factors that contribute to cardiovascular disease, including high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes. Medical Xpress  IN FOCUS Health workers assist a patient inside a tent at Kuwadzana polyclinic. Harare, Zimbabwe, November 18, 2023. Shaun Jusa/Xinhua via Getty Scrutiny of Shifting U.S. Aid Strategy    As the new “America First” health aid strategy moves toward more transactional agreements, Zimbabwe has rejected a proposed $367 million health package from the U.S.—citing a “lopsided” deal that “undermines the sovereignty and independence of Zimbabwe as a country” and that compromises established global health frameworks, per Business Insider Africa.     Objections: Zimbabwe’s leaders halted the talks over U.S. requirements for Zimbabwe to share sensitive biological and population data without guaranteed access to resulting medical innovations, reports Reuters via CNBC Africa. Zimbabwe leadership was also concerned about efforts to fold in mineral deals.  

• In response, the U.S. embassy in Harare said health assistance for HIV/AIDS, malaria, and maternal and child health would be wound down. 

Bigger picture: Zimbabwe’s withdrawal comes as a growing number of African nations sign onto such bilateral agreements—which global health experts say resemble China’s former government-to-government aid model, per NPR.  

• Now, China is moving away from such bilateral deals, investing instead in self-described “small and beautiful” health projects while strengthening WHO ties and global health partnerships. 

Meanwhile: The U.S. State Department is seeking to overhaul its international disaster response system, proposing a new Bureau of Disaster and Humanitarian Response that will separate international relief from migration policy, reports Devex.     Related:     What $50 Billion for U.S. Foreign Affairs Changes for Global Health – Think Global Health (commentary)  
  How debt relief for developing countries could help reverse the devastating consequences of UK aid cuts – The Independent  
  Little Clarity on Legality of Trump’s Foreign Aid Shutdown One Year After – Foreign Policy    GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES TUBERCULOSIS Antiquated, Isolated Care
   In northern Cameroon, patients with drug-resistant tuberculosis are often confined in hospital wards for months, unable to see their families or interact with their community until they test negative.    “We’re just here,” said TB patient Asta Djouma, who has been in isolation since October.     Outdated model: This sanitarium model was abandoned in many countries decades ago. The WHO has recommended home-based care for most TB patients for the last 15 years, citing research that shows people on home treatment do better mentally and medically.  

• But policy change in Cameroon and other low-income countries has lagged as health systems lack funds to monitor at-home care. 

Ongoing battle: ~40,000 people developed TB in Cameroon in 2024.      The New York Times (gift link)        Related:  
  Rapid sequencing approach could transform tuberculosis surveillance and care – Yale School of Public Health / Yale University
  Tuberculosis funding cuts could cost households up to $80 billion – CIDRAP   OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Trump cites health care issues in Greenland saying he’s sending a hospital ship. His claims are off – AP

As measles cases climb, these 9 diseases threaten comebacks – The Washington Post (gift link)

Hundreds of American nurses choose Canada over the U.S. under Trump – NPR

Bhattacharya’s growing power in Trump's HHS worries health experts – The Hill

There’s a Measles Alert in My Area. Now What? – Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Major Chinese funder to stop paying fees for 30 pricey open-access journals – Science

New Type Of Vaccine Could One Day Give Universal Protection Against Colds, Flu, COVID – IFLScience Issue No. 2870
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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  Copyright 2026 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.


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96 Global Health NOW: The Power of Polio Influencers in Malawi; and Fiji’s ‘Tsunami’ of HIV Infections View this email in your browser February 24, 2026 Forward Share Post TOP STORIES Renewed fighting in South Sudan has displaced nearly 280,000, damaged health facilities and hindered humanitarian aid operations, and fueled the spread of cholera; UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher warns it amounts to a “perfect storm” of conflict, climate shocks, and deprivation. UN News 
The U.S. FDA will drop the two-study requirement for new drug approvals—eliminating the longtime standard of requiring two rigorous studies—in an attempt to speed up the availability of certain medical products. AP 
Hepatitis B vax rates in the U.S. have slipped in the last couple of years to 73.2% in August 2025, researchers from Harvard and the UC San Diego School of Medicine found—reversing an era of growth with a high of 83.5% in 2023. JAMA
  Cannabis use among adolescents increases the risks of being diagnosed with bipolar and psychotic disorders, as well as anxiety and depression, years later, per a new longitudinal study in JAMA Health Forum that analyzed data on 460,000 teenagers in Northern California for a 25–year period. NPR  IN FOCUS Health worker Mable Njunga marks a door in Lilongwe, Malawi, indicating the home's children under 5 have had the polio vaccine. March 20, 2022. Amos Gumulira / AFP via Getty The Power of Polio Influencers in Malawi    The detection of poliovirus in sewage treatment plants in Blantyre, Malawi, triggered a massive vaccination drive in the past week. But health authorities are fighting more than the virus. 

• 1.3 million children have been vaccinated against the disease in four days with supplies airlifted by the WHO, The Guardian reports.  

Successful but: The rapid response has also run into indifference, misinformation, and reluctant parents. 

• At a Blantyre school, one in 10 students remained at their desks during a vaccination drive because their parents didn’t give consent.  

• One parent told The Guardian: “I feel my child has had enough vaccines in her life.” 

Creative persuasion: Logic and evidence often fail in communities already persuaded by misinformation on social media, said a Unicef polio manager sitting with a group of mothers. So she said health workers turn to influencers: 

• “You can give [a mother] any argument. It doesn’t matter. And then you have a local influencer walk in, and he says ‘vaccinate’, and she just hands you the child.” 

Meanwhile in the U.S.: Polio survivors are incensed by a federal vaccine committee chair’s recent assertion that polio vaccination should be optional, per another Guardian article. One survivor warns that many polio experts have retired and are taking their expertise with them.  GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HIV/AIDS Fiji’s ‘Tsunami of Infections’    Over the course of just five years, Fiji has become home to the world’s fastest-growing HIV outbreak, with cases surging from 147 in 2020 to 1,226 in the first half of 2025 alone. 

• And without intervention, Fiji health officials warn that number could swell to ~25,000 cases by 2029.   

Driving the epidemic: A boom in methamphetamine use has led to a rise in needle- and paraphernalia-sharing and other high-risk trends increasing transmission.   

• But at-risk populations are expanding beyond people who use drugs: 33 babies were born with HIV in early 2025. 

Lagging health response: While Fijian officials are budgeting for a more robust response, the country currently has limited testing and harm reduction infrastructure, and minimal stocks of antiretrovirals or PrEP.    The Telegraph    Related:  
Drugs, denial and stigma: the babies and children swept up in Fiji's HIV nightmare – The Guardian 
Zimbabwe rolls out long-acting HIV drug, among first countries to do so – PBS  DATA POINT

2881
———
The number of attacks on health care in Ukraine—including health workers, facilities, and ambulances—documented by the WHO since the full-scale war began on February 24, 2022. —WHO CORRECTION In a Top Story last week that covered the displacement of children in Ukraine, we said “Five years into Ukraine’s war” … but we should have said, “As the war in Ukraine enters its fifth year.” Thanks for flagging that error, Angeline Sawaya! SPONSORED Cells to Society: The Building Blocks of a Public Health Career
   Considering a career in public health? The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health is now offering online, noncredit courses for adult learners who are thinking about a career change, are seeking ways to be more helpful in their local communities, or are simply curious about how public health works. Explore available courses and register today to get a preview into a formal public health education.       Explore the Courses  QUICK HITS Destitute survivors of south-east Asia’s cyberscam farms an ‘international crisis’ – The Guardian    South Africa regulator backed by the food industry blocks ad on sugar’s health risks – The Examination    NIH research grant funding rates plummeted in 2025 – Science    Study: Antibiotic resistance threatens 30-year decline in deaths from lower respiratory infections – CIDRAP     Vaccine skeptic stepping down from No. 2 post at CDC – Axios    Biohackers and wellness influencers are pushing nicotine as part of their ‘stacks’ – STAT Thanks for the tip, Cecilia Meisner! 
How a Syrian refugee built a global mental health lifeline for displaced communities – Arab News  Issue No. 2869
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues: http://www.globalhealthnow.org/subscribe

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  Copyright 2026 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.


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96 Global Health NOW: Global Health sNOW Day View this email in your browser February 23, 2026 Forward Share Post iStock/Getty Global Health SNOW Day
GHN is off today due to inclement weather and reduced operations at Johns Hopkins University. We plan to be back tomorrow with all the latest global health news! —Dayna Issue No. 2868
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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Renewed fighting in South Sudan’s Jonglei state has displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians in recent weeks, damaged health facilities, fuelled the spread of cholera and prompting the UN relief chief to warn of a “perfect storm” of conflict, climate shocks and deprivation.

96 Global Health NOW: Afghanistan’s ‘Catastrophic’ Hunger Plus: Birth Certificates for Bangladesh’s ‘Invisible’ Children View this email in your browser February 19, 2026 Forward Share Post TOP STORIES Libya has eliminated trachoma as a public health problem, the WHO has validated—the result of a decades-long effort that involved improved surveillance, expanded surgical care, and training and support for eye health workers that was “particularly notable given years of political instability and humanitarian challenges” that strained health services. WHO  
 
New FDA guidance for antibiotic use in food-producing animals seeks to add duration limits to medically important antibiotics; but critics say the guidance fails to adequately address the rise and spread of antibiotic resistance and the potential impacts on human health. CIDRAP 
 
Early prenatal care has declined in the U.S., with the share of births to women who had prenatal care in the first trimester dropping from 78.3% in 2021 to 75.5% in 2024, per newly released CDC data; while reasons for the decline were not cited, the decrease was higher for mothers in minority groups, and specialists pointed to the rise in maternity deserts as a likely factor. AP  
 
Greater air pollution exposure has been linked to heightened Alzheimer’s risk, per a new study published in PLOS Medicine, which found that air pollution affected the brain through direct effects rather than through other chronic conditions. Euronews IN FOCUS A malnourished child holding his mother’s hand inside the Médecins Sans Frontières therapeutic nutrition center at a hospital in Herat, Afghanistan, on January 8. Wakil Kohsar/AFP via Getty Afghanistan’s ‘Catastrophic’ Hunger
Afghanistan faces a historic surge in malnutrition, as aid cuts, displacement, and drought leave two-thirds of the country’s population facing serious or crisis levels for acute malnutrition, reports the AP. 

• “We have a catastrophic nutritional crisis on our hands,” said John Aylieff, Afghanistan Country Director for the UN's World Food Program, noting that levels of malnutrition are the highest ever recorded in the country at 17.4 million people.  

Driving hunger: After the 2021 Taliban takeover, foreign aid plummeted and economic collapse left many without a lifeline for nutritional assistance. Since then, conditions have only worsened because of drought, earthquakes, and the return of 5.3 million Afghans expelled from Pakistan and Iran.    U.S. aid cuts last year delivered a devastating blow, and donors have since struggled to keep pace with the needs.    Most at risk:  

• Children: ~4 million children are acutely malnourished, and 500+ child deaths have been logged in recent months—likely an undercount.  

• Women: Prohibited from work, women are especially vulnerable. WFP has recorded a 30% rise in malnourished pregnant and breastfeeding women, and is seeing an uptick in suicidal calls from women with nowhere to turn.  

Fragility as Ramadan begins: “Many are beginning the fasting period without reliable incomes,” reports WFP. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HUMAN RIGHTS Birth Certificates for Bangladesh’s ‘Invisible’ Children
Hundreds of undocumented, “invisible” children born in brothels in Bangladesh now have birth certificates, opening the door to education and protections they previously could not access.     700+ children are newly documented after years of campaigning by activists with the Freedom Fund, who advocated for better documentation by pointing to a 2018 law that allows registration without a father’s details, and who worked to identify the children and collect their information.     Unlocking basic rights: The certificates will allow the children to enroll in school, acquire passports, and vote.  

• Documentation can also help protect children from trafficking.  

The quote: “These documents are not just a tool, it’s about survival,” said Khaleda Akhter, Bangladesh program manager for the Freedom Fund.     The Guardian ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION A Dog Has His Day
It’s safe to say that us non-athletes don’t spend most of our lives thinking about triple axels, frantically sweeping near a kettle-type-thing, or cross-country-skiing-really-far-then-shooting-something.  

But then for a few weeks every four years, we sink into our sofas and become winter sports dilettantes. We cry tears of joy and disappointment, lament scoring injustices, marvel at back stories—and wonder, popcorn in hand, if we might have stood a chance at Olympic greatness. 

• What we never considered: What if we just … joined in?  

Nazgul, a local Czechoslovakian wolfdog, did just that, leaping into the final stretch of the women’s cross-country skiing qualifying race at Milano-Cortina. Immediately disqualified on grounds of being male, a dog, and not even on skis, Nazgul was nevertheless the star of the event, The Guardian reports. 

A true sportsman, Nazgul congratulated fellow athletes with bum-sniffs at the finish line. Greek skier Konstantina Charalampidou welcomed the competition. 

“I wanted to pet him, but I didn’t have the time.”
 
 The sacrifices of an Olympian. QUICK HITS Measles cases in South Carolina rise by 12 to 962, state health department says – Reuters     NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya will take over leadership of CDC temporarily – NBC News     Why is the US targeting Cuba’s global medical missions? – Al Jazeera     FDA will drop two-study requirement for new drug approvals, aiming to speed access – AP     New Inhalable Tuberculosis Treatment Could Replace Months of Daily Pills – SciTech Daily    The most dangerous sport at the Winter Olympics? It’s not luge or ice skating – The Washington Post (gift link) Issue No. 2867
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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Scientists at McGill University and the Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Institute have developed a new way to deliver cancer immunotherapy that caused fewer side effects compared to standard treatment in a preclinical study.

96 Global Health NOW: Forced Begging in Ethiopia; and Botswana’s Health Care Breakdown View this email in your browser February 18, 2026 Forward Share Post TOP STORIES Five years into Ukraine’s war, more than a third of the country’s children—2,589,900—remain displaced, including 791,000+ children inside Ukraine and nearly 1.8 million children who are now refugees outside the country. UNICEF (news release) 
The UK government launched a vaccination campaign in response to a measles outbreak in North London; vaccine coverage with both doses of the MMR vaccine have now dropped to 89% across England, and below 65% for some areas. The Telegraph    Moderna’s flu vaccine will now be reviewed by the U.S. FDA after the agency reversed its decision last week to reject the application for the vaccine, which is made with mRNA technology. Reuters via Yahoo! Canada    The maker of Roundup, the weedkiller, has announced a proposed $7.25 billion settlement to resolve thousands of U.S. lawsuits which allege the chemical company, Bayer, failed to warn people that Roundup could cause cancer. AP  IN FOCUS People beg in the streets in central Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. November 16, 2010. Per-Anders Pettersson Forced Begging in Ethiopia     People with disabilities are frequently trafficked and forced to beg in Ethiopia’s major cities in an often overlooked form of human trafficking that researchers describe as a “crime hiding in plain sight,” per a new study from the Population Council that is among the first to focus on the specific form of trafficking.     Exploiting vulnerability: Children with disabilities from poor rural families are especially at risk, facing stigma, exclusion, and almost no access to school or social support. 

• Traffickers often convince parents to allow them to take their children to urban areas like Addis Ababa, Dire Dawa, and Mekelle—promising education or medical care. 

Extreme abuse: Once trafficked, the children are often forced to beg for long hours, often under “cruel and inhumane” conditions including near-starvation, minimal sleep, and constant threats of physical violence and abandonment.  

• “I would go out crawling on my hands since I didn’t have a wheelchair,” reported one female survivor with a physical disability, adding that if she returned with too few earnings her trafficker “insults me and hits me.” 

• Most were too afraid or dependent upon traffickers to seek help, and the police rarely provided a pathway out. 

Calls for intervention: Researchers say trafficking can be prevented and reduced through: 

• Stigma reduction, including inclusive education and jobs for those with disabilities. 

• Safer reporting mechanisms and tailored law enforcement response.  

• Support systems after rescue, informed by survivor experience. 

The Population Council   GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HEALTH SYSTEMS Botswana’s Health Care Breakdown    Botswana's once-model health system is swiftly deteriorating amid a diamond trade slump that has drained national finances and exposed weaknesses in the country’s health funding structure.     Severe shortages: Medicine and supply stocks at hospitals have run out, forcing staff to buy supplies out-of-pocket, and leading to extensive wait times.  

• A public health emergency was declared six months ago, but an ombudsman’s new investigation reveals continued struggles, including the country’s largest hospital being reduced to an “old, heavily worn vehicle, overloaded with passengers.”  

Need for reform: While emergency measures are being implemented, including a $43 million infusion from The World Bank, officials are calling for deep systemic reform—like changes to drug procurement and health insurance.     The Telegraph  OPPORTUNITY Watch the Series, Host a Screening
The third and final installment in the Escape the Neglect: Stories from the Front Lines docuseries, following the innovation arc in the treatment of sleeping sickness in the DRC, is now live. 

• The docuseries, produced by Devex in partnership with the Gates Foundation, spotlights the human stories from the global effort to end neglected tropical diseases in Nigeria, India, and the DRC. 

Host a screening: These short films (5–10 minutes each) offer a simple, meaningful way to spark conversation. To make hosting easy, the creators of the series developed Screening‑in‑a‑Box, a flexible toolkit that provides everything you need to facilitate an in-person or hybrid event, including:  

• A facilitation guide with inclusive, action‑oriented discussion prompts. 

• An NTD factsheet with episode‑specific context. 

• Ready‑to‑use invitation and promotional language. 

QUICK HITS UK cuts aid further than any G7 country, including the US – The Telegraph    Vaccine Makers Curtail Research and Cut Jobs – The New York Times (gift link)     Chlorine Dioxide, Raw Camel Milk: The FDA No Longer Warns Against These and Other Ineffective Autism Treatments – ProPublica    Progress on family planning in Afghanistan is still possible – The Guardian (commentary)     The science influencers going viral on TikTok to fight misinformation – Nature    This form of mental exercise may cut dementia risk for decades – NPR's Short Wave Issue No. 2866
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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La résistance anti-ICE au Minnesota et le devoir de mémoire de nos lignées solidaires.

96 Global Health NOW: Booming ‘Bootleg Cigarettes’ Down Under; and the Race for WHO Leadership Ramps Up View this email in your browser February 17, 2026 Forward Share Post TOP STORIES Mortality among people who inject drugs and participated in a Stockholm, Sweden, needle and syringe program declined over a decade of harm reduction intervention expansion, including a take-home naloxone effort; the Karolinska Institutet study observed a marked reduction in opioid overdose deaths. Medical Xpress     Plastic water bottles contained more chemicals than glass: Ghent University researchers tested 37 Belgian brands and found 17 endocrine-disrupting chemicals, including bisphenol B and acetaminophen—and observed that higher price correlated with increased phthalate levels. Environmental Health News    The benefits of intermittent fasting “fail to match the hype,” concludes a Cochrane review of 22 studies that found little to no weight loss improvement compared to regular dietary advice or doing nothing at all for people who were overweight or obese. ABC Australia 
Ultra-processed food companies hijacked the Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) “loophole” to let questionable ingredients slip into American food products, says U.S. health secretary RFK Jr., who pledged to act on a petition from former FDA chief David Kesler to address the issue. CBS IN FOCUS Pedestrians walk past signs outside a tobacconist and convenience store in central Sydney, Australia. March 27, 2025. David Gray/AFP via Getty Booming ‘Bootleg Cigarettes’ Down Under 
Australia’s aggressive taxes on cigarettes have driven down smoking rates and raised an average pack’s cost to US$40. But they’ve also unleashed a nationwide black market, The New York Times reports (gift article). 

• The tax on a single cigarette has tripled in a decade to about US$1.06.  

Unintended consequences: 

• The price spike has launched a huge demand for illegal cigarettes. A pack of under-the-counter cigarettes costs as little as US$7. 

• Illegal cigs are commonly sold at shops and via private sales, accounting for perhaps half of all tobacco sales.  

• Criminal gangs are smuggling in cigarettes from the Middle East or China.  

• “Tobacco wars” have spawned 100+ firebombings and hundreds of attacks on shopkeepers and others, as turf battles have erupted among gangs.  

Next steps: Government officials have previously rebuffed any discussion of reducing the excise tax to stem the illegal trade, but last week finance minister Katy Gallagher acknowledged that all options are on the table, per The Guardian. 
Public health perspective: The illegal market has made prices so cheap that further tax increases wouldn’t do much good, said Becky Freeman, a University of Sydney tobacco expert.  

• “I only support tax increases if they are effective at reducing smoking,” Freeman said.  

Related:  
Smoking And Quitting Behaviors Vary by Socioeconomic Position – European Medical Journal       Exclusive: India sticks to e-cigarette ban in snub for Philip Morris – Reuters  DATA POINT

123 million
——————
Additional malaria cases in Africa by 2050 that could be triggered by climate change, driven mostly by extreme weather events, per a modeling study led by researchers from The Kids Research Institute Australia and Curtin University. —Nature Medicine
  WHO Race for WHO Leadership Ramps Up    Diplomatic maneuvering has begun for the WHO's next director-general, as the nomination process opens in April for next year’s vote.     And while a list of rumored candidates is growing, the successor to current chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus faces an “existential convergence of crises” amid geopolitical rifts and major funding challenges.     An agency at a crossroads: The WHO’s next leader will have to steer the agency at a critical juncture that includes a $1 billion funding gap after the U.S. withdrawal, a 25% staff cut, and low morale.     Seeking a “unicorn”: The incoming chief will also need to balance demands for global equity with fiscal reform—all while trying to meet 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and prepare for potential pandemics in a post-COVID landscape.    Health Policy Watch  SPONSORED Cells to Society: The Building Blocks of a Public Health Career     Considering a career in public health? The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health is now offering online, noncredit courses for adult learners who are thinking about a career change, are seeking ways to be more helpful in their local communities, or are simply curious about how public health works. Explore available courses and register today to get a preview into a formal public health education.       Explore the Courses  QUICK HITS Mexico Risks Losing Its Measles-Free Status, Months Before Millions Arrive for World Cup – The New York Times (gift link)    Doctors bear the burden as ‘medical freedom’ fuels worst US measles outbreak in 30 years – Reuters via Yahoo     Investment in Malaria Venture Yields 13x Health Benefits – Health Policy Watch     Indian Health Service to phase out use of dental fillings containing mercury by 2027 – AP    As More Schools Turn to AI Weapons Detection, Questions Persist – Undark 
As US presence wanes, China works to increase its influence through foreign aid – NPR 
The Karate Class Where Kenya’s Grandmothers Learn to Fight Back – More to Her Story  Issue No. 2865
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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Nearly two thirds of all maternal deaths worldwide occur in countries marked by conflict or fragility, according to a report released on Tuesday by the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners.

96 Global Health NOW: Progress and Pushback on Polio Vaccination; and Peru’s Defective Cancer Drugs View this email in your browser February 16, 2026 Forward Share Post TOP STORIES A measles outbreak in London is spreading rapidly among children under age 10, per the U.K. Health Security Agency, which has reported 34 laboratory-confirmed cases over the last month linked to schools and nurseries in Enfield. The Guardian 
  A new recombinant mpox strain combining genomic elements of clades Ib and IIb of the virus has been identified in two cases—one in the U.K. and the other in India—per a detailed update from the WHO, which has urged continued genomic surveillance. UN News  
  Whooping cough cases in Australia have hit their highest level recorded in 35 years following a “potentially catastrophic” drop in vaccinations; 57,000+ cases were reported in 2024—mostly among children. ABC Australia 
  France will slash its funding for the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria by 58%+ for the next two-year cycle, from €1.6 billion to €660 million; French NGOs warned that the cuts—which could impact antiretroviral HIV treatments, malaria prevention, condom availability, and testing services—will cost lives. Radio France Internationale IN FOCUS Progress and Pushback on Polio Vaccination     The WHO is expanding the global arsenal for polio outbreak response by prequalifying an additional novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2) aimed at curbing vaccine-derived outbreaks “more sustainably” in the ongoing quest to eradicate the virus.     But the progress comes as vaccination strategy is under threat in a new era of politicization—potentially endangering decades of gains.     The new nOPV2 vaccine is designed to be more genetically stable than older vaccines, reducing risk of vaccine-derived outbreaks while effectively curbing virus transmission, per the WHO.      Meanwhile in Malawi, health officials have launched a new oral polio vaccination campaign in schools and door-to-door, seeking to administer 1.7 million nOPV2 doses after detecting vaccine-derived type 2 virus in sewage in the southern city Blantyre last month, reports the AP.      “Polio endgame”: The WHO's SAGE Polio Working Group convened in Geneva this month to review global polio eradication strategies, including phasing out the two-strain oral vaccine (bOPV) while improving the nOPV2 and next-generation shots (IPV), per Vax Before Travel.     An uncertain future in the U.S.: Despite these global strides, the future of vaccine strategy in the U.S. is uncertain as allies of HHS Sec. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. form coalitions to roll back state-level school vaccine mandates—alarming public health experts who warn this could swiftly erode a century of protections against deadly childhood diseases, including polio, reports The New York Times (gift link).  DATA POINT

123 million
——————
Additional malaria cases in Africa by 2050 that could be triggered by climate change, driven mostly by extreme weather events, per a modeling study led by researchers from The Kids Research Institute Australia and Curtin University. —Nature Medicine
  PHARMACEUTICALS Peru’s Defective Cancer Drugs     Ineffective and even dangerous cancer drugs have been repeatedly shipped to Peru health facilities amid an ongoing pattern of regulatory failures within the country.     Unfit for use: ~118,000 vials of chemo bought with government funds have been ordered destroyed since 2019, though some reached hospitals and even patients before they were scrapped.     Poor track records: Pharma companies with problematic track records have been awarded state contracts, even after their drugs have failed quality tests.     Exacerbating a crisis: 1 in 4 cancer patients in Peru experience treatment delays because of drug shortages.     The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, in partnership with Salud con Lupa  OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Key US infectious-diseases centre to drop pandemic preparation – Nature    NSF’s flagship fellowship program is rejecting applicants without peer review – Science    RFK Jr. shakes up top health department staff – Axios    She was denied a legal abortion and sent to prison over an illegal one. Now she tells her story – AP    HIV made him expect to die at 40. At 73, Edwin Cameron asks: Who’s planning for our ageing survivors? – Bhekisisa    Photos: The flying doctors of Lesotho won’t let their wings be clipped – NPR Goats and Soda  Issue No. 2864
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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The detection of a newly identified recombinant mpox virus containing genetic material from two known strains underscores the need for continued genomic surveillance, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday, as the overall global public health risk assessment remains unchanged.

Scientists have identified a pattern of gene activity present in some female survivors of childhood abuse that is associated with an elevated risk of depression.