Ten to 15 million people in the U.S. are infected with latent TB. One in 10 will likely develop active tuberculosis and could spread it to others.

In 2005 there were 14,093 cases of TB in the United States. The decline in cases represents one of the smallest declines since the devastating resurgence of TB between 1985 and 1992, when over $1 billion was expended in New York City alone to regain control of TB.

The IOM report, Ending Neglect: The Elimination of Tuberculosis in the U.S., found that the resurgence of TB in the U.S. between 1985 and 1992 was due, in large part, to funding reductions and concluded that, with proper funding, organization of prevention and control activities, and research and development of new tools, TB could be eliminated as a public health problem in the U.S.

The current funding level for CDC's Division of TB Elimination represents a 23% decrease over the past decade when adjusted for inflation.

New tools are needed to more effectively prevent, diagnose, and treat TB.  The standard method of diagnosing TB is over 100 years old and fails to adequately detect TB in children and those co-infected with HIV/AIDS.

The newest class of anti-TB drugs is over 40 years old, while the rate of multi drug resistance is rising. The TB vaccine was developed in the early 1900s, is administered in early childhood and is not highly efficacious over the many years that people are at risk for TB.