Seth Berkley
Seth Berkley
Seth Franklin Berkley, M.D.is a medical epidemiologist by training. He is the CEO of the GAVI Alliance and a global advocate on the power of vaccines. He is also the founder and former President and CEO of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative. After graduation from McBurney School, New York, in 1974, he received a Bachelor of Science and medical degrees from Brown University, and trained in internal medicine at Harvard University. Berkley has been featured on the cover of Newsweek...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionScientist
CountryUnited States of America
Seth Berkley quotes about
Massive numbers of vaccines would be needed and companies are concerned, 'who's going to pay for that,'
We should have an effective vaccine in five to seven years.
Developing an Aids vaccine for the regions of the world in greatest need will take many more innovative partnerships like this one given the difficult scientific challenges we face,
The best vaccine imaginable is only valuable to the extent we get it to everyone who needs it.
The return on investment in global health is tremendous, and the biggest bang for the buck comes from vaccines. Vaccines are among the most successful and cost-effective health investments in history.
Measles is probably the best argument for why there needs to be global health, and why we have to think about it as a global public good. Because in a sense, measles is the canary in the coal mine for immunization. It is, you know, highly transmissible. The vaccine costs 15 cents, so it's not - you know, shouldn't be an issue in terms of cost.
For just a few dollars a dose, vaccines save lives and help reduce poverty. Unlike medical treatment, they provide a lifetime of protection from deadly and debilitating disease. They are safe and effective. They cut healthcare and treatment costs, reduce the number of hospital visits, and ensure healthier children, families and communities.
Now, when you get a viral infection, what normally happens is it takes days or weeks for your body to fight back at full strength, and that might be too late. When you're pre-immunized, what happens is you have forces in your body pre-trained to recognize and defeat specific foes. So that's really how vaccines work.
New vaccines are being developed all the time, which could save many more lives and dramatically improve people's health. And this goes beyond the traditional burden of childhood infectious diseases.
History will not judge HIV/AIDS kindly... the harshest words will be reserved for how the world responded, or rather failed to respond, to the epidemic.
Leadership is about vision and responsibility, not power.
As variable as flu is, HIV makes flu look like the Rock of Gibraltar. The virus that causes AIDS is the trickiest pathogen scientists have ever confronted.
We've actually eliminated Type II polio in the world, at least as far as we can tell.
When it comes to providing aid, developing innovations, and making bold steps that change the course of history, the United States is usually on the front lines.