July 13, 2010

Barbara Lee Applauds Announcement of National AIDS Strategy

For Immediate Release

Contact: Nicole Y. Williams
(202) 225-2661

Attends White House reception to honor work of HIV/AIDS community

Washington D.C. – Today Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) applauded the release by the Obama Administration of the first-ever National AIDS Strategy, which aims to reduce the annual number of new HIV infections by 25 percent within five years. She joined President Obama and a number of her colleagues in honoring members of the HIV/AIDS Community for their tireless work on the issue.

Congresswoman Lee worked closely with the Obama Administration to craft a strategy to better coordinate and guide the national response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic - with a focus on areas with the greatest need and population groups at greatest risk.

“I applaud the President for developing this new National AIDS Strategy and laying out a roadmap for how our country must address this devastating disease,” said Congresswoman Lee. “Even as we welcome the release of this strategy, we must also recognize the urgent need for additional funding to eliminate the current waiting lists for life-saving AIDS drugs in states around the country.

“Our charge in Congress must now be to ensure that we provide the necessary resources to address these urgent needs and ensure that this new strategy gets implemented quickly and effectively.

“As the various Departments and Agencies begin to develop their plans to implement the strategy over the next few months, I will be working closely with my colleagues to ensure that the concerns of our community are met. Most immediately I will continue to advocate for additional funding to support the many valuable innovative programs and services that are provided by AIDS organizations in my district."

Last year, Congresswoman Lee held a joint town hall meeting with the Administration in her district to help shape the National AIDS Strategy. This meeting, along with others held across the country stressed the importance of:

  • Reducing racial and ethnic health disparities associated with HIV/AIDS;
  • Targeting resources to meet the needs of high risk groups - particularly Black men who have sex with men, Black women, and intravenous drug users;
  • Stopping the spread of HIV in prisons;
  • Supporting culturally competent HIV/AIDS training and diversity programs among clinicians, and;
  • Ensuring that testing programs are linked to care and treatment services at the state and local level.

Additionally, as a member of the Appropriation Committee, Congresswoman Lee has worked tirelessly to increase funding for HIV/AIDS programs throughout the country.

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