Just as the Ebola pandemic is waning, the Zika virus is emerging as the new threat to global health. This highlights the key message contained in the recent report by the National Academy of Medicine’s Commission on a Global Health Risk Framework for the Future. Pandemics and infectious disease outbreaks are a continual threat to human lives, the global economy, and security. Unfortunately, the world is not adequately prepared for disasters of this nature. We need to strengthen national health systems and improve global and regional responsiveness. Prof Dzau will discuss the importance of investing in pandemic preparedness, lessons learned from previous outbreaks, and the findings of the final report by the National Academy of Medicine’s Commission on a Global Health Risk Framework for the Future.

The Commission makes a compelling case for investing in pandemic preparedness and response as an essential tenet of national security and global economic stability. According to an original analysis commissioned for this report, annualised expected losses from pandemics total $60 billion. The Commission proposes investing just a fraction of that cost — $4.5 billion per year — to make the world much safer from future pandemics. The Commission’s bold and cross-cutting recommendations comprise a three-pronged framework: 1) strengthening public health as the foundation of the health system and the first line of defense; 2) strengthening global and regional coordination and capabilities; and 3) accelerating research and development to counter infectious disease threats.