Infectious disease outbreaks must be combatted strategically, experts say

New funding is not enough to guarantee success against emerging infectious diseases around the world. Rather, good governance, a long-term technology investment strategy and strong product management skills are essential, say a Dartmouth College researcher and her co-author. Their article appears in the journal Nature Biotechnology. Kendall Hoyt, Ph.D., an assistant professor at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and an expert in biosecurity, and Richard Hatchett, M.D., the acting director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, propose a new way to develop countermeasures for Ebola, Zika and other emerging infectious diseases. As momentum builds for an international effort to develop drugs and vaccines for emerging infectious diseases, the duo examined U.S. biodefense programs to understand approaches that might work and developed a global strategy for countermeasure development. “As infectious outbreaks such as SARS, MERS, Ebola and Zika become the...