Ted, remember the AIDS issue we discussed several months back? Seems like Bush is not only aware of the problem, but is also committing billions of dollars in aid:
usatoday.com
You can look at this skeptically and say Bush is trying to neutralize a key Democrat platform, but I'm sure Africans will welcome the aid regardless. Now if only we can make sure that money is spent prudently, efficiently, and wisely ...
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AIDS advocates praise Bush's funding plan
By Steve Sternberg, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — President Bush has pushed the government's response to global AIDS to an unprecedented level, experts said Wednesday, setting a lofty example for other wealthy nations to follow. (Related story: Africa welcomes $15 billion from U.S. for AIDS)
In his State of the Union address Tuesday night, the president asked Congress to commit a total of $15 billion over the next five years to an Emergency Relief Fund for AIDS in Africa, $10 billion more than the administration is already spending.
Many AIDS experts and advocates welcomed the proposed funding boost, which would begin with $2 billion in the 2004 budget. The proposal would more than double the $1.5 billion a year that the administration now spends on global AIDS. The administration also proposes giving $500 million to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis.
"I think it is a very positive move that puts support for international AIDS programs in a whole new ballpark," says Nils Daulaire, executive director of the Global Health Council, which represents public health organizations worldwide.
"It is really a significant step," says Jamie Drummond of the Debt AIDS Trade Africa (DATA), an advocacy group that works in tandem with the rock star Bono and other celebrities. "It's a credit to the president."
About 42 million people worldwide are living with HIV, the AIDS virus, and 20 million more have died overall, leaving 14 million orphans, according to the Joint United Nations AIDS Programme (UNAIDS). The emergency fund would provide relief for 14 countries (13 in Africa and one in the Caribbean) with half of all the HIV-infected people worldwide, and 70% of those in Africa.
The State Department will disburse the money to an array of organizations in each country. They will fund prevention and medical care through an approach pioneered in Uganda. Major medical centers serve as the hub of a network of hospitals, clinics and outreach workers who care for people in their homes.
Peter Mugyenyi of Kampala's Joint Clinical Research Center, who helped develop the Ugandan system, occupied a seat of honor beside first lady Laura Bush during the president's address.
"My greatest hope is that other countries will come in and supplement this, in addition to the global AIDS fund," he said Wednesday. Currently, only a fraction of Uganda's 2 million AIDS patients get treatment — those who can afford it.
Among the initiative's goals:
* Prevent 7 million new infections, amounting to 60% of the 12 million new infections in the targeted countries: Botswana, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Guyana, Haiti, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
* Supply anti-HIV treatment for 2 million HIV-positive people, often with low-priced generic drugs that have reduced monthly costs from about $1,100 to $300.
* Provide medical and other care for 10 million AIDS patients and orphans.
The program will attempt to reconcile conservative ideals with public health realities, coupling abstinence education with condom distribution, officials said. Generics will be offered as well as discounted brand-name drugs.
For more than year, many organizations have been pushing the administration to boost AIDS funding. Activists have sponsored call-in campaigns and demonstrated in front of the White House. Bono's group, DATA, sponsored a Heartland Tour of celebrities to convey the magnitude of AIDS to middle Americans. "Bono has been one of the major advocates," says Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
AIDS advocates in turn praise Fauci for tirelessly pushing for the program; he credits Bush. "This was the president's idea," he says.
Fauci says the president embraced the idea last summer, when he agreed to sponsor an effort to curb the spread of HIV from mother to child worldwide. "He made it clear he wanted to go way beyond that." White House officials say Bush had planned to announce the proposal in mid-January during a trip to Africa. That trip was postponed because of the escalating crisis with Iraq and hasn't be rescheduled.
Some activists objected that the five-year timetable is too slow for a disease that is spreading so fast; they also noted that most of the money bypasses the Global Fund, which is running out of money.
Others saw the initiative as a chance to push other wealthy countries to contribute. "This is an unprecedented opportunity for President Bush to go to the other leaders of the (eight wealthiest countries) and lean on them to do their part," says Sandra Thurman, president of the International AIDS Trust and formerly President Clinton's AIDS czar.
Contributing: Lawrence McQuillan |
