Lee Lauds Decision to Protect AIDS Funds Stop-Gap Spending Bill Will Include $1.3 Billion Increase
(Washington, DC) – A bipartisan group of lawmakers led by Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Oakland) has succeeded in securing more than $1 billion in funds for programs to stop the spread of global HIV/AIDS, funds that were threatened by a stop-gap spending measure in which most accounts are being frozen or cut.
“When the Republican Congress failed to finish the fiscal year 2007 spending bills, they left behind a fiscal nightmare,” said Lee. “I am appreciative of our leadership’s ability to address that problem in a way that is both fiscally responsible and takes into account the terrible human cost of a freeze in AIDS funding.”
On Wednesday, the House will take up a bill to fund the government largely at fiscal year 2006 levels, the Democrats solution to the Republican Congress’ failure to pass most of the fiscal year 2007 spending bills before adjourning. The Continuing Resolution will contain $4.7 billion for Global AIDS, TB and malaria programs, an increase of more than $1.4 billion over fiscal year 2006 levels, and slightly more than the lawmakers asked for.
The increase includes $3.25 billion from the State Department's Global HIV/AIDS Initiative account; $712 million from the Child Survival and Health Programs Fund account at USAID; and $494 million for CDC and NIH Global HIV/AIDS Activities. Of these amounts, $724 million will go to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, with $625 million of that coming from State/USAID and $99 million from HHS. Funding for fighting malaria got a separate increase of $149 million for a total of $248 million.
Two weeks ago, Lee and Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) lead a bipartisan, bicameral group of 126 Representatives and Senators in writing to House and Senate Appropriators, asking them to maintain almost $1 billion in funds that had been approved by the Senate, but not by the House.
In 2006, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved $4.36 billion for fiscal year 2007 for U.S. funding for international HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria programs. Simply continuing the fiscal year 2006 funding would provide only $3.43 billion, a loss of more than $900 million.
According to the Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator, if additional funds are not received, at the current rate of scale-up it is likely that at least 350,000 people would not receive treatment from the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) over the remaining 7 months of the fiscal year and an estimated 110,000 to 175,000 people would die.
Level funding would mean a loss of $250 million for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS Tuberculosis and Malaria, and $130 million for the President’s Malaria Initiative. According to the Global Fund, every $100 million can provide 370,000 HIV tests or treatment for 11,000 people with AIDS, 80,000 people with TB or 150,000 people with malaria.
According to recent estimates, 39.5 million people are now living with HIV/AIDS worldwide. Last year, nearly 3 million people died of AIDS-related causes, and 4.3 million people were infected with HIV.
Last December the President announced that as of the end of September, 2006, 1.2 million people were receiving antiretroviral therapy through the combined work of the Global Fund and PEPFAR. According to the World Health Organization 6.8 million people need antiretroviral therapy now.
Lee was a coauthor of the bipartisan legislation that established PEPFAR, which designated $15 billion for the prevention, care, and treatment of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. She also co-authored the Global AIDS and Tuberculosis Relief Act of 2000, which established the framework for the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. To date, the Global Fund has committed $4.4 billion in 128 countries to support aggressive interventions against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. In 2005, she successfully passed legislation to focus U.S. foreign assistance on the impact of AIDS on orphans and vulnerable children in developing countries.
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