The International  Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (Geneva,  Switzerland) and Eli Lilly  and Company (Indianapolis, IN) have signed an agreement that will allow  an eight-fold increase in the number of International Federation-supported  programs to fight multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) over the next four  years.

  Lilly’s $1.6 million  contribution will finance programs between 2008 and 2011. In 2008 alone, the  International Federation will expand its support to 10 additional MDR-TB  programs in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Romania,  Georgia, Kenya, Mozambique,  and South Africa,  for a total of 14 MDR-TB programs. The first phase of the International  Federation and Lilly MDR-TB Program was implemented from 2004 to 2007 in three  pilot countries. 

  Red Cross and Red  Crescent TB programs include providing patients with care, food and support,  educating the community about the spread and symptoms of tuberculosis,  detecting new cases through surveillance, and addressing the stigma associated  with the disease. 

 International Red Cross  and Red Crescent Movement web site

News

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (Geneva, Switzerland) and Eli Lilly and Company (Indianapolis, IN) have signed an agreement that will allow an eight-fold increase in the number of International Federation-supported programs to fight multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) over the next four years.