PMLiVE (01/31/2012)
The World Health Organization is collaborating with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; U.S., UAE, and U.K. governments; and 13 pharmaceutical companies to work toward the eradication of overlooked tropical diseases. The plans are outlined in "Accelerating Work to Overcome the Global Impact of Neglected Tropical Diseases – A Roadmap for Implementation." This outline provides objectives for an approach to control and eliminate diseases such as rabies, leprosy, and blinding trachoma. The companies involved include Pfizer, Sanofi, GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, Gilead, Eisai, Bristol-Myers Squibb, MSD, Merck KGgA, Johnson & Johnson, Abbott, Bayer, and Novartis. They will provide financial assistance and medicine donations to fight these diseases. The campaign was launched at an event at the Royal College of Physicians in London, where all collaborators signed the "London Declaration on Neglected Tropical Diseases" agreement, pledging new levels of collaboration, tracking, and reporting of progress.

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