Cory Booker proposes bill to fight neglected diseases of poverty
Stop bill is first in the US to focus exclusively on illnesses that impair the lives of up to 12 million Americans
The Democratic presidential candidate Cory Booker introduced on Wednesday a Senate bill to prevent, detect and ultimately eradicate neglected diseases that thrive amid extreme poverty and impair the lives of up to 12 million Americans.
Booker’s bill, which goes under the acronym Stop – the Study, Treat Observe and Prevent Neglected Diseases of Poverty Act – is the first in the US to focus exclusively on such illnesses. It follows growing awareness of the health disaster caused by faulty or non-existent sewage treatment, unsafe drinking water and substandard housing and sanitation.