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Abstract:
Infectious diseases are among the main causes of death and disability
in developing countries, and they are a major reason for the health disparity
between rich and poor countries. One of the reasons for this public health
tragedy is a lack of lifesaving essential medicines, which either do not exist or
badly need improvements. In this article, we analyse which of the push and pull
mechanisms proposed in the recent literature may serve to promote research into
neglected infectious diseases. A combination of push programmes that subsidise
research inputs through direct funding and pull programmes that reward
research output rather than research input may be the appropriate strategy to
stimulate research into neglected diseases. On the one hand, early-stage (basic)
research should be supported through push mechanisms, such as research grants
or publicly financed research institutions. On the other hand, pull mechanisms,
such as prize funds that link reward payments to the health impacts of effective
medicines, have the potential to stimulate research into neglected diseases.
