The H7N9 virus, a new strain of the bird flu in China, has so far claimed twenty-two victims and officials are watching its spread closely.

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Laurie Garrett offers a detailed account of how the H7N9 virus emerged and describes the two possible paths it may now follow, by pulling from her own experiences in the SARS epidemic ten years ago and reflecting on parallels between the two.

Thomas Bollyky writes about how national patent laws are affecting pharmaceutical cost differentials around the world.

Laurie Garrett outlines inconsistencies in the Chinese government's reports about the ongoing H7N9 outbreak.

Read Yanzhong Huang's chapter titled "Global Health,Civil Society, and Regional Security," in the book A Growing Force for Good: Civil Society's Role in Asian Regional Security, edited by Rizal Sukma and James Gannon.

Yanzhong Huang responds to a China File conversation on the recent bird flu outbreak in China.

Laurie Garrett explores the possibility of a new pandemic in China.

Both China and India have been increasingly active participants in global health governance, but their contributions thus far fall short of international expectations and also fail to offer a viable, sustainable alternative to the existing governance paradigm.

Peter Orszag writes that, although health care costs have been rising more slowly, recent data suggest Medicare spending growth may have sped up slightly in the past few months.

Climate change has both direct and indirect health consequences. Direct consequences include those resulting from high temperatures and severe weather events; while indirect ones arise from changing air and water quality and ecological shifts that favor tropical diseases and parasites.

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Peter Orszag argues that reforming medical malpractice law to include "safe harbors" that protect doctors who follow evidence-based medical guidelines could bring down health-care costs without reducing the quality of care.

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.

"In the U.S., people spend almost 20% of the gross domestic product on health care, compared with about half that in most developed countries. Yet in every measurable way, the results our health care system produces are no better and often worse than the outcomes in those countries."

Peter Orszag finds good news about health care costs in the latest budgetary and economic projections released by the CBO, but he cautions that the outlook for unemployment and federal spending is still gloomy.

Christopher J.L. Murray and Jennifer Kates discuss disease from the perspective of shaping U.S. policy, spending priorities, and potential action.

Peter Orszag argues that aggressive action to continue recent slowing in health-care cost growth can help to stabilize the U.S. fiscal trajectory and increase take-home pay.

Peter Orszag explains why and how the federal government should encourage more clinical data registries, which can cut health care costs and improve patient outcomes.

Kelly Brownell, director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University, and Derek Yach, senior vice president of the Vitality Group and member of PepsiCo's Scientific Advisory Board, debate the role of the food and beverage industry in the global fight on obesity.

In this Council on Foreign Relations meeting, "Is There a Seat at the Table for the Food and Beverage Industry in the Global Fight Against Obesity," Drs. Kelly Brownell, Director, Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, Yale University, and Derek Yach, Senior Vice President, Vitality Group, and Member, PepsiCo Scientific Advisory Board, debate the involvement of the food and beverage industry in the fight against global obesity.

Secretary of State Clinton "unveiled the PEPFAR Blueprint: Creating an AIDS-free Generation that provides a roadmap for how the U.S. government will work to help achieve an AIDS-free generation" on November 29, 2012, World AIDS Day.