Global health diplomacy focuses on the political aspects of health, and how elements other than biological factors contribute to disease—studying the overlap between policy, finance, social systems, etc., how these overlaps determine health outcomes in different populations, and how countries can work together to improve global health (“What is Global Health Diplomacy,” n.d.).

Accompanying increased globalization, changes to diplomatic practices and development have increased the importance and practice of global health diplomacy (Chattu & Chami, 1970)—serving as a form of soft power, global health diplomacy provides an avenue for governments to improve health outcomes around the world, connecting medicine with foreign affairs (“What is Global Health Diplomacy,” n.d.). Global health diplomacy has been on the country’s radar since the late 1900s, when the concept was initiated by one of President Carter’s Aides, but the practice of global health diplomacy did not become a large U.S. political priority until the Clinton and Obama Administrations’ global health efforts. Now, more than ever before, global health diplomacy is an important initiative during the COVID-19 Pandemic to combat the spread of COVID and to collaborate across borders to develop and distribute an effective COVID vaccine. 

The concept of global health diplomacy originated during the Carter Era: in 1978 the Carter Administration released the New Directions in International Health Cooperation report, which detailed the role of global health in U.S. diplomacy and advocated for increased U.S. contribution to international health in order to advance foreign policy goals (“Raising the Profile of Diplomacy”, 2012). Peter Bourne, who worked as an Aide for President Carter—serving as Special Assistant to the President for Health Issues—was the first to introduce the idea of global health diplomacy. In 1978, Bourne wrote that through ‘medical diplomacy’, U.S. support for international health “...can be a basis for establishing dialogue and bridging diplomatic barriers” (“Raising the Profile of Diplomacy”, 2012) and that “...the role of health and medicine as a means for bettering international relations has not been fully explored by the United States” (“What is Global Health Diplomacy,” n.d.). Thereafter, the term ‘medical diplomacy’ evolved into ‘global health diplomacy’ through international communication and collaboration between policy makers and healthcare professionals, connecting public and private sectors in a global effort to improve international health (Khodayari-Zarnaq et al., 2020).

The involvement of the U.S. in global health continued to grow through the Clinton Administration, as President Clinton founded the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) in 2002 to help millions of people living with HIV/AIDS. CHAI became a global health leader, forming partnerships with other governments and with the private-sector to lower treatment costs and strengthen healthcare systems, expanding adequate treatment around the world (Clinton Health Access Initiative, 2016). Since its founding, CHAI has operated in 38 developing countries and over 70 countries now have access to vaccines, medical equipment, diagnostics and treatment price reductions made possible through the Initiative’s global efforts (Clinton Health Access Initiative, 2016). 

America’s global health diplomacy efforts continued to expand during President Obama’s first and second Presidential terms, as the Obama Administration made global health diplomacy a U.S. political and foreign policy priority. In May 2009, President Obama launched the $63 billion Global Health Initiative (GHI), which partnered with countries around the world to improve global health outcomes through “...strengthened health systems, increased and integrated investments in maternal and child health, family planning, nutrition and infectious diseases including HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases, and through a particular focus on improving the health of women, newborns and children.” (“Fact Sheet: U.S. Global Development Policy,” 2010). During the second Obama term, the Administration increased the U.S. Global Health agenda, collaborating with world leaders and the scientific community from other nations to continue addressing seven important, widespread global health issues: HIV/AIDS, malaria, polio eradication, women’s health, health security, health diplomacy, and multilateral partners (“Global Health Policy,” 2013). President Obama’s drive for the U.S. to have increased involvement in global health and a collective international focus on overcoming global health problems, helped improve health outcomes around the world. 

Presently, the COVID-19 Pandemic has brought global health diplomacy and global collaboration to the forefront of foreign affairs in an effort to limit COVID-19 exposures and transmission, and to develop an effective wide-spread vaccine as quickly as possible. While health policy has increasingly contributed to foreign policy, there has been little focus on ways to achieve a global collective security against emerging diseases, something that this pandemic is set to change for the future: “COVID-19 has shown that such viruses can transcend any border and cause economic meltdowns.…The pandemic could bring new opportunities for collaboration given the complexity of global health...as situations like this require robust political communication (Bayaa 2020).” (Alam, 2020). The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed many inadequacies in healthcare systems around the world, and through the fast-paced spread of the COVID-19 virus to every corner of the world, emphasized the importance of global health diplomacy and partnerships between public and private sectors and different global entities to solve widespread health issues. 

Now more than ever, global health diplomacy is at the forefront of news coverage, dinner table conversations, government initiatives and global awareness. COVID-19 knows no borders - it is a global issue, and as Ambassador John E. Lange—Senior Fellow for Global Health Diplomacy—emphasizes, "We're all in this together, and we can only stop it together” ("After this is over,” n.d.). If there is one thing global leaders have learned over the last few decades and through this pandemic, it is that global health diplomacy is a necessary effort for improving health at a global level. It is imperative for health officials and government leaders to continuously collaborate across borders—working not only to overcome present health issues, but to be prepared for future outbreaks, pandemics, and health emergencies. 

Stephanie Stan

Global Ties Detroit Programming and Communications Intern, Fall 2020

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