NCDs such as cancer and heart disease are becoming leading causes of death in the developing world and will be the focus of a September UN meeting. But health experts and others are divided about how much funding should go into a global campaign aimed at preventing NCDs and whether infectious disease programs will suffer as a result.

The World Health Organization has gained prominence for its success in battling diseases such as polio and malaria, but is challenged by an unwieldy mission and strained resources in a landscape of competing organizations.

As the United States looks to reform its health care system and expand access to the uninsured, countries that have moved toward universal health care may offer lessons.

Governments increased funding and international cooperation to limit the spread of avian flu. But the unpredictability of a potential pandemic raises concerns over global preparedness.

In a short time, the Gates Foundation has established a reputation as an innovative, effective donor to global health causes. A $30 billion gift from Warren Buffett is expected to dramatically expand the foundation's influence.

A comprehensive new study of the world's health status has the potential to dramatically improve how developing countries address surging problems like noncommunicable diseases, writes CFR's Thomas Bollyky.

The World Health Assembly in Geneva this week needs to do more to define a workable mission for the struggling World Health Organization.

An examination of the World Bank's evolution as a global health actor and Jim Yong Kim's career in public health raises questions about how he would handle the role of president, writes CFR's Laurie Garrett.

The 2011 high-level UN meeting on non-communicable diseases fell far short of the major funding and targets agreed to at a similar meeting on HIV/AIDS a decade ago, which CFR's Thomas Bollyky says indicates a need for different actors and approaches on chronic diseases.

The United States should see family planning as a foreign policy priority that leads to healthier and more prosperous societies, and should increase funding, resources and support for those countries with the highest unmet need, argues CFR's Isobel Coleman.

The global fight against HIV and AIDS cannot be won without success in South Africa, but while President Zuma's government has made progress, it has to do more to prevent future infections and provide better treatment, says CFR's Peter Navario.

CFR fellow Peter Navario says the debate over the impact of billions of HIV dollars on developing countries' health systems misses the point: such aid can address both HIV treatment and improved health systems.

CFR Senior Fellow Laurie Garrett writes that the United States cannot afford to reduce its foreign assistance spending, even though it faces its toughest budgetary challenge since the Great Depression.

Four CFR fellows weigh in on the effectiveness of the State Department's Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review recommendations.

Efforts to vaccinate Pakistani children are in peril after the CIA's vaccine ploy to help capture Osama bin Laden, placing the entire region at risk of outbreaks, says CFR's Laurie Garrett.

One year after the UN's high-level meeting on noncommunicable diseases, little progress has been made in generating momentum and new resources. But with the right focus and strategies, there is room to move forward, says CFR's Thomas Bollyky.

The International AIDS Conference shows that challenges, such as funding and maintaining political will, likely means no short-term end to the epidemic, says CFR's Laurie Garrett.

With the UN meeting on AIDS funding this week, CFR's Laurie Garrett says the slow response to the AIDS epidemic was the single biggest failure in public health and argues the need to double funding for new treatments to stop the spread of the disease.

Trends in global aging in the coming decades pose serious fiscal challenges to developed and developing nations unless longstanding social policies are revamped, says CFR's Michael Hodin.