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Are We Ready for the Next Pandemic? A Global Vision
Series | All-Hazards Preparedness and Response
Authors: Elizabeth Diago-Navarro, Clara Marín-Carballo (ISGlobal)*
[ This document is one of a series of discussion notes addressing fundamental questions about global health. Its purpose is to transfer scientific knowledge into the public conversation and decision-making process. The papers are based on the best information available and may be updated as new information comes to light. ]
On July 8, 2024, a team of American and Japanese researchers published an article in Nature warning that the new highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5N1 might have the potential to spread among mammals.1 This is highly concerning news, as it significantly elevates the public health threat posed by the virus and positions it at the forefront of potential causes of the next pandemic. COVID-19 caused millions of deaths and incalculable economic losses, but it also injected renewed political and social will into efforts to strengthen surveillance, alert, and response systems for future
pandemics. These efforts included the establishment of funds to support these initiatives and political actions to create effective governance structures for protecting against systemic risks of infection. Now, more than 4 years since the onset of this global catastrophe, the political, financial, and electoral window of opportunity to strengthen the global architecture for preparedness is closing. The question is as stark as it is inevitable: Are we doing enough to prepare for the next pandemic?
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July 25, 2024 Photograph: Maxim Malov / CDC
*Elizabeth Diago-Navarro, Coordinator of ISGlobal’s Preparedness, Response, Recovery and Resilience working group. Clara MarínCarballo, Coordinator of ISGlobal’s Global Analysis and Development Department. Both authors contributed equally to this document. The authors would like to thank Gonzalo Fanjul, ISGlobal’s Director of Policy Analysis, and Antoni Plasència, distinguished fellow and former director general of ISGlobal, for their contributions to this document. 1 Elsfeld A.J., Biswas A., et al. (2024), Pathogenicity and transmissibility of bovineH5N1 influenza virus. Nature: https://www.nature.com/ articles/s41586-024-07766-6
www.isglobal.org
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