Eradicating TB

On 8 May 1980 the World Health Organization declared the world rid of smallpox. Success in eradicating smallpox was achieved because governments worked together and considerable resources were devoted to the fight. On 26 September the United Nations will convene the first ever high level meeting to commit to ending another global epidemic, that of tuberculosis (TB).

TB has exacted an awful toll, it has been responsible for more than 1 billion deaths over the past two centuries and is still the leading infectious disease killer globally.1 The success of the smallpox effort provides valuable insights into how substantial declines in TB incidence can be achieved, despite differences between the two diseases.

Progress towards smallpox eradication occurred when sovereign nations agreed to be accountable to working collectively to end the epidemic, and to be accountable for their contribution to this effort. Global accountability is also necessary to secure the political and financial investment to end TB. Accountability for Reasonableness2 —an ethics …