New investment plan for combating tuberculosis outlined by experts

Health experts have called for a clear investment plan and a complete overhaul of current practices to combat tuberculosis more effectively worldwide.

A report from the Stop TB Partnership has called for a $56 billion (36.76 billion pounds) investment package from 2016 to 2020, to be spent on providing 29 million people with tuberculosis with treatment.

The overall aim of the plan is to ensure 90 percent of all people with tuberculosis are diagnosed and treated, with a particular focus on vulnerable populations, while also making sure that 90 percent of people who have been diagnosed successfully complete treatment.

It is estimated that this will save more than ten million lives and prevent 45 million people from getting ill with tuberculosis. Moreover, this will offer one of the highest returns on investment of any health intervention – an estimated $85 for each dollar invested.

Dr Lucica Ditiu, executive director of the Stop TB Partnership, said: "It is a global disgrace and human tragedy that tuberculosis – a curable disease – is killing around 1.5 million people per year and nobody speaks about ending it."