For Immediate Release
April 2, 2008 |
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FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Cullen Schwarz
Office: 202.225.4961
Mobile: 202.225.0471 |
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Rep. Levin Supports Bill To Expand U.S. Effort to Fight Global HIV/AIDS, TB, and Malaria
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U.S. Must Lead International Effort to Build a Long-Standing Movement to Deliver Life-Saving Medicines |
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(Washington D.C.)- Rep. Sander Levin today joined a bipartisan majority in the House of Representatives in support of landmark legislation that will extend and expand a key initiative to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria around the globe. The Lantos-Hyde U.S. Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization was approved by a vote of 308 – 116.
“Our nation must be an international leader in the fight against deadly infectious diseases, particularly HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria,” said Rep. Levin. “We must accelerate all efforts against these preventable diseases which kill millions of people every year, destabilizing communities, nations and even entire regions, and exacting a terrible toll in human suffering.
“Tuberculosis, a disease that can easily be treated, is responsible for 25% of all preventable deaths in developing countries. And, we have seen the effectiveness of AIDS medicines and prevention programs. We have the ability to leverage a more aggressive long-term movement that holds as a basic premise that economics and geography must not determine your access to life-saving drugs for these terrible diseases.’”
In May 2003, on a bipartisan basis, the Congress enacted the U.S. Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act (PL 108-25) – authorizing $15 billion over five years for U.S. contributions to both bilateral and multilateral efforts. It was based on the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which he unveiled in January 2003. Over the last five years, this program has been critical, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa – for example, having provided life-saving drugs to almost 1.5 million AIDS patients and having promoted successful programs to prevent the spread of the HIV infection.
This bill reauthorizes and expands this key initiative over the next five years – authorizing $50 billion. It is a carefully-crafted bipartisan compromise – worked out between House Democrats, House Republicans, and the Bush Administration.
In the first five years of the U.S. response to the global HIV/AIDS epidemic, U.S. policy was driven by the urgency of an emergency response. Under this bill, the U.S. will develop and implement strategies to transition from the emergency phase to long-term sustainability that can be maintained by the host countries.
The bill’s goals include: by 2013, preventing 12 million new HIV infections; providing life-saving drugs for 3 million AIDS patients; providing medical and non-medical care for 12 million people (including 5 million orphans); and training 140,000 new health care workers.
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