A World Trade Organization (WTO) Panel has ruled against complaints brought by several countries concerning Australia’s tobacco packaging law, which implements the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and its Guidelines. The panel decided that Australia’s policy on plain packaging is consistent with WTO law.
Recreational marijuana may soon be legal in Canada, after both the House of Commons and the Senate approved the Cannabis Act. Legal sales are likely to begin before the end of the boreal summer after the Senate voted 52-29 on Tuesday night to approve the bill, CBC reported.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is releasing this Monday its new International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). The ICD is the foundation for identifying health trends and statistics worldwide, and contains around 55 000 unique codes for injuries, diseases and causes of death. It provides a common language that allows health professionals to share health information across the globe.
Tributes have been paid to renowned physicist Prof Stephen Hawking in a Westminster Abbey memorial service. British actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who played Hawking in a BBC drama, and astronaut Tim Peake were among those giving readings at the ceremony.
Following unconfirmed reports on 8 June of suspected polio re-emergence in Venezuela, final laboratory testing has confirmed the cause of the paralysis is not wild poliovirus or vaccine-derived poliovirus, according to a release from WHO.
The collapse of the public health care system in Nicaragua and the breakdown of medical ethics and human rights in the country have been condemned by the World Medical Association. Referring to the rapidly deteriorating situation in the country, WMA President Dr. Yoshitake Yokokura said that attacks on health workers, medical vehicles and hospitals were unacceptable.
Argentina's Lower House will vote on Wednesday a bill to decriminalize elective abortion without judicial authorization in the first 14 weeks of pregnancy. In Argentina abortion is only allowed when the mother's life is at risk or as a result of rape.
The World Health Organization (WHO) certified Paraguay as having eliminated malaria, the first country in the Americas to be granted this status since Cuba in 1973. “It gives me great pleasure today to certify that Paraguay is officially free of malaria,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director General, in a recorded statement.
Humans are both creatures and molders of their environment, which gives them physical sustenance and affords them the opportunity for intellectual, moral, social and spiritual growth.
A new blood test shows promise for detecting many types of cancer, even in the early stages of the disease, according to a new study. In the study, researchers found that the test could detect 10 types of cancer and that it was 80 to 90% accurate for some cancer types. However, much more research is needed before doctors will be able to use the test on their patients, experts say.