Combating Malaria During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Introduction

Today, nearly 30 million people around the world have been infected by the COVID-19 virus, and the numbers continue to climb. During this global pandemic, it is easy to overlook other pressing global health issues, such as the annual burden caused by malaria. This paper provides a discussion of a hypothetical situation in which an application for $100 million is being submitted to address this specific global health issue. A description of the overarching global health philosophy that guides the application is followed by a description of the global health priority of malaria. Finally, a description of the envisioned intervention for malaria is presented, followed by a summary of key findings concerning combating a major disease during a global pandemic.

Global Health Philosophy

A relevant and timely global health philosophy should be consistent with the provisions of international accords that guarantee equitable access to health care for everyone. For example, the constitution of the World Health Organization, published in 1946, states in part that "the highest attainable standard of health [is] a fundamental right of every human being." Likewise, Article 25 of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, promulgated in 1948, stipulates in part that "Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services."

This global health philosophy therefore conceptualizes health as a fundamental human right — a perspective intended to ensure that all human beings have the same level of access to high-quality medical care. Although the complete achievement of this ideal is unlikely for all of the world's nine billion people, this conceptualization also reinforces the fact that governments have a responsibility to their citizens to ensure they receive the best medical care possible. In this regard, the World Health Organization emphasizes that "understanding health as a human right creates a legal obligation on states to ensure access to timely, acceptable, and affordable health care of appropriate quality" (Human rights and health, 2017, para. 4). In addition, regarding health as a basic legal human right also means that governments have a duty to their citizens to ensure sufficient sanitation, food, drinkable water, shelter, and access to accurate health care-related information (Human rights and health, 2017, para. 4). This perspective also means that the populations most deserving of attention are those whose governments are unable or unwilling to provide these services, as discussed further below.

Global Health Priority: Malaria

The three key aspects of the global health priority of malaria are addressed below in terms of the central questions of who, what, when, where, and why; why malaria is the most important issue; and how COVID-19 has impacted this condition.

The central question of "why" was addressed by the global health philosophy outlined above. The answers to the central questions of "who," "what," and "when" are those individuals who remain at high risk of contracting malaria at present and in the future. The answer to the "where" question is primarily people who live in sub-Saharan Africa (Malaria, 2020). While it is possible to contract malaria anywhere that large numbers of disease vectors such as mosquitoes exist, people living in regions with significant uncontrolled populations of these insects are at particularly elevated risk. In this regard, the CDC advises that "the vast majority of cases in the United States are in travelers and immigrants returning from countries where malaria transmission occurs, many from sub-Saharan Africa" (Malaria, 2020, para. 3). As the rapid proliferation of the COVID-19 virus clearly indicates, however, virtually no one is entirely safe from communicable diseases such as malaria in an increasingly globalized world.

Findings from a recent CDC study reinforced the need for increased vigilance and effective interventions for malaria. In 2015 alone, malaria was responsible for 212 million cases of illness and 429,000 fatalities, meaning that about one child dies from the disease every two minutes. In other words, despite years of aggressive efforts to eradicate this deadly disease, far too many people around the world — but especially those living in sub-Saharan African countries — remain at high risk of contracting malaria today (Top 10 global health priorities, 2017).

Indeed, the CDC reports that more than two out of every five people in the world (around 41%) are at high risk of contracting malaria. A globalized transportation network means the disease can be transmitted into unaffected regions of the world overnight, as evidenced by more than 1,500 cases of malaria being imported into the United States each year from high-risk regions. Not surprisingly, the economic costs of this global health burden are staggering, amounting to at least $12 billion each year — a sum that is still woefully inadequate to fully address the problem of malaria (Top 10 global health priorities, 2017).

Conclusion

At some point in the future, public health authorities will scrutinize the global response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic to identify which interventions were most effective and which represented a waste of time and money. At present, public health authorities already possess this information about malaria, and the research consistently shows that significant progress has been made in controlling this disease in recent years. Despite this progress, tens of millions of people around the world remain at high risk of contracting malaria each year, and a globalized transportation network ensures that virtually everyone else in the world is also threatened by this disease. In the final analysis, it is reasonable to conclude that simply "throwing money" at some problems is not the answer — but directing $100 million at malaria would represent a timely and valuable enterprise.

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