NEW YORK (November 6, 2017)—TB Alliance today announced the appointment of Dr. Ariel Pablos-Méndez to its board of directors. As a physician and a leader in global public health, he brings decades of experience in strategies to improve the lives of the poor and most vulnerable people in the world, including spurring the creation of the TB Alliance in 2001.
Dr. Pablos-Méndez is currently Professor of Medicine at Columbia University Medical Center in New York. From 2011 to 2016, he led the Global Health program of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), where he drove the vision to end preventable child and maternal deaths and contributed to catalyzing an AIDS-Free Generation while supporting health systems strengthening, family planning and country ownership through initiatives such as the Global Financing Facility for Every Woman Every Child. He participated in the US response to Ebola and Zika, and championed the Global Virome Project in 2016.
“I am delighted to be joining TB Alliance’s Board as the organization advances the development of faster, better cures for TB,” said Dr. Pablos-Méndez. “Our slow progress in controlling TB is imperiled by spreading resistance to existing drugs; we need to invest in research and development for more options.”
Dr. Pablos-Méndez began his public health career at Columbia University working on the emergence of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis in New York City in 1991. In 1997, he led the Global Surveillance Project on Anti-Tuberculosis Drug Resistance at the World Health Organization (WHO). In both instances, his research and publications brought about significant and successful policy changes.
As program officer of The Rockefeller Foundation from 1998 to 2004, Dr. Pablos-Méndez spearheaded public-private partnerships in R&D for diseases of poverty, including TB Alliance and the foundation's strategy on AIDS treatment in Africa. In 2007, he returned to Rockefeller as managing director and led the foundation’s initiative to position universal health coverage on the international agenda.
“Dr. Pablos-Méndez brings to TB Alliance invaluable experience and expertise in the fight against tuberculosis alongside other major global health issues,” said Dr. Mel Spigelman, president and CEO of TB Alliance. “We are excited to have his support as we put science to work toward transforming TB therapy to achieve the vision of the End TB Strategy.”
Dr. Pablos-Méndez received his medical degree from the University of Guadalajara in Mexico and his Masters in Public Health from Columbia University, where he has been a faculty member for over 20 years.
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About TB Alliance
TB Alliance is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to finding faster-acting and affordable drug regimens to fight tuberculosis (TB). Through innovative science and with partners around the globe, we aim to ensure equitable access to faster, better TB cures that will advance global health and prosperity. TB Alliance operates with support from Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Germany’s Federal Ministry of Education and Research through KfW, Global Health Innovative Technology Fund, Irish Aid, Indonesia Health Fund, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UNITAID, United Kingdom Department for International Development, United States Agency for International Development, and the United States Food and Drug Administration. For more information, please visit: www.tballiance.org