Countries, partners and civil society commit to strengthening public-private care provider engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic to enable access to affordable TB care at PPM Working Group Meeting

Over 300 representatives from countries, partners and civil society came together virtually at the Global Meeting of the Working Group Meeting on Public-Private Mix (PPM) on TB prevention and care on 23 and 25 November. The Meeting was convened by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Stop TB Partnership with support from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Global Fund. The meeting was opened by Dr Tereza Kasaeva, Director of WHO’s Global TB Programme and Dr Madhukar Pai, Chair of the Stop TB PPM Working Group and Associate Director of the McGill International TB Centre. Nigerian TB survivor and advocate Funke Dosumu shared her personal struggle against TB and made a passionate plea for stronger public-private collaboration to ensure access to quality care for those ill with TB without added financial burden. The meeting placed a spotlight on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the TB response, which has been especially severe on private sector care delivery. A special talk was delivered by award-winning journalist Barkha Dutt. She issued a strong wake-up call on the tragic impact of COVID-19 on the poor and vulnerable, especially those struggling with TB and other infectious diseases in accessing affordable care.

source https://www.who.int/news/item/27-11-2020-countries-partners-and-civil-society-commit-to-strengthening-public-private-care-provider-engagement-during-the-covid-19-pandemic-to-enable-access-to-affordable-tb-care-at-ppm-working-group-meeting