SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Sept. 24, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Direct Relief President and CEO, Thomas Tighe, joins Pres. Barack Obama, Pres. Bill Clinton, and more than 1,000 business, governmental, and nonprofit global leaders in New York City for the ninth Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting held Sept. 23-26.
Together with the World Health Organization (WHO) Pakistan office and Pakistani nonprofit, Sulaimaniyah Trust, humanitarian organization Direct Relief is supporting a commitment announced today by Heartfile Health Financing (HHF) – a Pakistani organization dedicated to expanding health care to the nation's underserved people – to provide the critically-needed medical supplies to improve the health and lives of Pakistanis most in need.
This commitment comes at a time when more than 78 percent of people in Pakistan pay out-of-pocket to access health care services even though more than 60 percent of the country's population lives on less than the equivalent of $2 USD a day, according to The Lancet. As a result, more than 120 million people risk being pushed into medical poverty, reports the Planning Commission of Pakistan.
In the past, Direct Relief has worked with other CGI members on commitments, including with health care company, Abbott, and the Afghan Institute of Learning to train and equip midwives in Afghanistan as well as with technology company, Palantir, and veteran response organization, Team Rubicon, to enhance emergency response coordination and information sharing.
Earlier this year at the Clinton Health Matters Initiative meeting sponsored by the Clinton Foundation, collaboration between Direct Relief, medical technology company, BD, and the National Association of Community Health Centers was also announced. The nationwide, multi-year initiative expands care for people with diabetes and identifies and awards innovative models of prevention and care for certain health conditions at nonprofit health centers and clinics in the U.S.
On behalf of Direct Relief, Tighe serves as an adviser to the Clinton Global Initiative on its 'response and resiliency' track – one of nine organizing themes for the CGI membership. Direct Relief was selected to have a representative based on the organization's extensive work in these areas, including its ongoing work in Haiti as part of CGI's Haiti Action Network.
About Direct Relief
Direct Relief is a leading medical relief organization, active in all 50 states and in 70 countries. It works with more than 1,000 health clinics across the U.S. to assist in emergencies and an ongoing basis, providing them with free medications for people in need. The organization has been among the world's largest medical suppliers in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, has top charity ratings, including four-star and "top-notch" rating from Charity Navigator, and a 99% fundraising efficiency rating from Forbes magazine. For more information visit www.DirectRelief.org.