As the world has been battling the deadly COVID-19 virus, another pandemic has continued to leave its own trail of devastation: road crashes. Although we know what the policies and practices are to prevent them, neither governments nor society have done enough to deal with this problem definitively. Every year 1.3 million people lose their lives in road crashes and tens of millions are injured. The vast majority of victims are in low- and middle-income countries and, tragically, the most affected are young people.

Drowning kills more than 80,000 children globally each year and is one of the top ten causes of death for people under 25 in every region of the world. These deaths are especially unacceptable because they can be prevented with relatively simple measures.

As mayors around the world grapple with implementing equitable COVID-19 vaccination programs for their citizens, Bloomberg Philanthropies announced grants to 18 cities in low- and middle-income countries to support their planning for vaccine distribution rollouts with an emphasis on reaching high-risk populations.

The FDA’s announcement that it will ban the sale of menthol cigarettes is significant victory in the fight against the deadly, predatory tactics of the tobacco industry.

Michael R. Bloomberg, Founder, Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies, and 108th mayor of New York City, joined Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, in calling for urgent action to tackle noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) like diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, cancer and respiratory diseases, which account for over 74% of deaths globally and worsen outcomes of patients with COVID-19.

More than 30 of the nation’s leaders and innovators in infectious disease, public health, government, and nonprofit advocacy gathered for the virtual Bloomberg American Health Summit to share their perspectives on what it will take for the United States to fully recover from the pandemic and build a healthier future.

“When we launched our campaign to protect kids from e-cigarettes a year ago, the vaping epidemic was spiraling out of control – and the single biggest reason was kid-friendly flavorings that lure and addict young people. Since then, cities and states that are home to more than 80 million Americans, including more than 17 million […]

In a third virtual session, more than 30 mayors and city leaders representing 49 cities joined a panel of their peers in Leading Through Crisis: Reducing the Impact of COVID-19 in Latin America and Africa. The virtual learning series is hosted by Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative and the Partnership for Healthy Cities, with support from Vital Strategies and its Resolve to Save Lives initiative.

The NYC COVID-19 Response & Impact Fund announced that more than $110 million in emergency support has been distributed to 768 New York City-based social services and arts and cultural nonprofits affected by the coronavirus public health crisis.

In the midst of a devastating pandemic, President Donald Trump is destroying the CDC’s ability to discharge its most vital responsibility: to maintain active surveillance of diseases by gathering, analyzing and reporting data. Even by this president’s low standards, this is unconscionable.